Tag Archives: cincinnati bengals

NFL, Pro Football HoF

Munoz, Anthony (2)

Cards: GameDay 1992, Skybox 1992, Proset 1991
Acquired: TTM 2019, C.o Home
Sent: 12/2 Received: 12/14 (12 days)
See Also: Anthony Munoz

Anthony Munoz sometime during 2019 decided to let go of his very stringent signing policy which required fans to jump through the hoops and pay a fee in order to get his autograph. Surprisingly he was signing anything and everything with no fee. I decided to give him a shot again since I had some really nice cards I had always wanted to get his autograph on. I thought that 3 was a tall order, so I felt I needed something that’d really stick out among his autograph requests- so I wrote my entire letter in Spanish. There’s a first for everything, and while I didn’t get complimented for my syntax, I did get these 3 cards back autographed in a very short amount of time.

While Anthony had an outstanding ProSet and Action Packed entry, I decided to pass them up in order to get a few nice set needs. The ProSet 1991 card art card by Merv Corning is outstanding. The autograph looks very nice on the canvas- especially on the white. I’m sure he signs this card more than any other.

The other two cards are cards that I really liked the design of, and were sets that I collected near the end of my first collecting phase in 1992. The GameDay set I am particularly fond of, and this is a nice, unique card of Anthony. I really like how it shows his padded, gloved hands- something that has become more rare and rare over the years in the league. Skybox remained near the top there at the end for me , and when I can, I love to pick up an autograph here or there on one of them.

Sometime in 2020, Muñoz closed the door again on signing for free and without the acrimonious signing policy. As of this post he is back to asking for $25.00 per item.

College Football HoF, NFL, WLAF

Williams, Reggie (LB)

Cards: ProSet 1989, Action Packed 1990, Action Packed Whizzer White Award 1991, ProSet 1991 WLAF Inserts
Acquired: TTM 2020, C/o Home
Sent: 10/5 Received: 10/17 (12 days)

Reggie Williams played college football at Dartmouth, and was a 3 time All-Ivy League selection from 1973-1975. Reggie was so dominant that he caught the attention of pro scouts, parlaying his efforts to become a 3rd round selection of the Cincinnati Bengals in 1976.

Over the next 14 seasons, Reggie went on to become one of the Bengals best draft picks. He played in an unheard of 206 games (one short of Ken Riley for the franchise record), and virtually owned the entire Bengals record books at linebacker for every statistical category including: career tackles, sacks, interceptions, and fumbles. He also earned the Whizzer White Award in 1985, the NFL Man of the Year Award in 1986, and SI’s Sportsperson of the Year in 1987.

Reggie made waves next as he went on to work in the front office of the World League of American Football‘s New York-New Jersey Knights franchise in 1991, becoming one of the first African American General Managers in any pro capacity.

He’s been at the frontlines of visionary ideas leading sport and NFL initiatives and then working with Disney overseeing their recreational and sports divisions since then. In the final years of his time with the Bengals he also served as a city councilman, and was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2007.

Still despite all this, and being virtually an icon with Cincinnati, Reggie has been largely unheralded by his former franchise. A true warrior, he’s had over 25 knee surgeries since his career concluded, and it has taken its toll on his leg. He’s written a book about his life, ‘Resilient by Nature’, where he gives a great wealth of insight into his life, and shares his dedication and willingness to overcome whatever obstacles he faces.

I had wanted to get Reggie’s autograph for sometime. He is the epitome of who I like to get an autograph from and for whom I like to write about. He has had an interesting journey both in and out of the sport- and I feel that he is someone who doesn’t get enough accolades for all he’s done. I wrote him an email through Facebook and he was kind enough to respond to me. We talked briefly about his foray into the World League- where he told me, “He loved the travel.” I sent him some old photos of magazine clippings from Gametime magazines as well that he enjoyed very much. He was doing a book signing in the area, so I sent him a stack of extra cards for his personal collection and to hand out to fans. A man of his word, Reggie signed these cards in no time flat for me.

G/GSTACSACFUM
206/196N/A62.523
INTYDSAVGTDLG
1619412.1154T

AAF, NFL

Ross, Kayaune

Card: Topps AAF Certified 2019
Acquired: 2019, EBay

Before Kayaune joined the Kentucky Wildcats in 2016, he saw valuable playing time at Phoenix College (JC). Over his two years with the Wildcats, Ross caught 21 passes for 296 yards and a TD. A track man, NFL teams were intrigued by Ross’ speed and he spent some time on the preseason rosters of the Bengals, Seahawks, Colts, and up north with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

Kayaune joined the AAF in 2019 and was assigned to the Memphis Express. The team or league was confident in his star power and made jerseys of him before the season, but after the week 2 contest against the Hotshots, he had just one catch for 7 yards on the season. Coach Singletary, attempting to churn the roster to bring some life to the WR corps, cut Kayaune from the Express, ending his AAF stay after 2 games.