Tag Archives: Atlanta Falcons

AAF, CFL, NFL

Daniels, BJ (2)

Topps AAF 2019, #159
Topps 2020, #131

CARDS: Topps AAF 2019, Topps XFL 2020
ACQUIRED: TTM 2023, C/o USF Bulls
SENT: 12/26 RECEIVED: 2/5/24 (41 days)
FAILURE: TTM 2020, 2023

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

NOTES:

I had tried BJ a few times already without any luck- even delaying posting his original post for a few months hoping I’d get a success back, but no dice. Every once in a while I pull out my stack of failures that were RTSed by the mailman and go through them. I decided to take a closer look at Daniels’ address. I knew he worked at USF but the address was off by just a bit, so I tweaked it and tried again. A bit over two months later he sent me back the autographs and a really nice note on USF stationary thanking me for being a fan.

Arena, NFL

Conner, Darion

Gameday 1992, #7

CARDS: Action Packed 1991, Gameday 1992, Skybox 1992
ACQUIRED: TTM 2023, C/o Home
SENT: 1/3 RECEIVED: 1/30 (27 days)

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

  • Darion Conner was a 3 time All-Southwestern Athletic Conference Selection out of Jackson State.
  • In 1989 posted 12.5 sacks and 130 tackles.
  • Second round pick of the Atlanta Falcons in 1990, Conner was prized for his versatility.
  • Settled at ROLB, and in first 3 seasons went over 100 tackles each year.
  • In 1994, played one season for the Saints, and had a career high 10.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, and an interception for 56 yards.
  • 1995 saw him take his skill set to Carolina, where he added another 7.0 sacks to his resume as an original member of the Panthers.
  • After two largely fruitless seasons in Philadelphia (’96-’97), Darion was signed by the ‘original but new’ Cleveland Browns.
  • Didn’t play a down for the team, so he decided to take his skills to the Arena Football League in 1999 playing OL/DL.
  • Connor was an impactful player in Arena Football.
  • He’d play with the Tampa Bay Storm through 2005.
  • Connor’s football career ended abruptly after he committed DUI-manslaughter and vehiculuar homicide.
  • He was sentenced to 15 years in prison- of which, he has paid his debt to society and is now a free man.
Action Packed 1991, #4
Skybox 1992, #126

NOTES:

Darion signed all three of these cards for me masterfully with a silver sharpie. The Skybox card looks incredible.

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NFL
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ARENA
NFL

Johnson, Norm ‘Mr. Automatic’

Fleer 1990, #268

CARD: Fleer 1990
ACQUIRED: EBay, 2023

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

  • Norm Johnson was a placekicker for UCLA from 1980-’81.
  • Over those two years he locked in 64 of 65 extra points, and 24 of 33 field goals.
  • He was signed as an UDFA by the Seattle Seahawks in 1982.
  • Played the next 9 seasons for the team, and in 4 of those seasons accounted for 20 or more field goals.
  • Signed with Atlanta in 1991, played with the Falcons through 1994.
  • In 1993, he went 26 of 27 on fieldgoals, including a 54 yard long.
  • Joined the Steelers in 1995, and immediately paid dividends hitting 34 of 41 field goals that year at Three Rivers to lead the NFL in both those categories.
  • Played final season for the Eagles in 1999.
  • Finished career with a whopping 1,736 points in 273 games played.

ACCOLADES:

  • All Pro 1984
  • Second Team All Pro 1993
  • Pro Bowl 1984, ’93
  • Seattle Seahawks 35th Anniversary Team

NOTES:

Norm played for the ‘Seattle Knights’ on Tecmo Bowl- and he was absolutely terrible. The season that his player stats were based off of, 1985, was an outlier, and his worst season as a pro, when he hit 14 of 25 field goals. In general, Norm was a very reliable kicker throughout his playing career, but he could never shake that bad moniker for me.

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