Tag Archives: indianapolis colts

NFL

Rhodes, Luke

Card: Sage 2016
Acquired: 2016, Box Breaker

Luke Rhodes played inside linebacker at William & Mary- not exactly a powerhouse of football.  But give credit where credit is due. He did manage to land on the radar of scouts finishing with 341 career tackles (5th in school history) from his inside linebacker position. Rhodes passed the eyeball test but what some teams coveted from him was his long snapping capability- something that he seldom had done since high school.

After the 2016 NFL Draft, Rhodes signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, however he was released during final cuts. He’d be signed by the Colts about a month later and added to their practice squad. In 2017, Luke won an open competition for the job and became the Colts full-time long snapper.

NFL

Michael, Christine ‘C-Mike’

Card: Crown Royale Silhouette 2013 (222/299)
Acquired: 2018 BB, Walmart Autographed Memorabilia

Christine Michael played college ball for Texas A&M from 2009-2012. He posted solid numbers while at the school and finished his career there with 529 carries for 2791 yards and 34 TDs. With a whopping 5.4 yards per carry, C-Mike was also an effective receiver out of the backfield posting 44 receptions for 323 yards and a TD.  His numbers during the combine were effective enough to help his draft stock. He’d be selected in the 2nd round of the 2013 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks.

C-Mike played sparingly over the next few years. Fantasy Football owners regarded him as a sexy deep sleeper, especially with questions about Marshawn Lynch and Robert Turbin. He’d be traded to the Dallas Cowboys in 2015. Looking for depth after the departure of DeMarco Murray, Michael was viewed as a forward thinking trade by the Cowboys. Instead of fighting for a starting nod, Christine was on the street quickly in November. He’d be briefly on the roster of the Redskins, before returning to the Seahawks.

The Seahawks knew how to use C-Mike right. He’d post career highs in rushing twice over the next few weeks filling in for Lynch and Thomas Rawls. He’d re-up with the Seahawks in 2016.  Michael appeared to be the starter for the following season, but with the emergence of CJ Prosise and the return of Rawls, C-Mike was inexplicably cut. He quickly found a home with the runningback starved Green Bay Packers and finished 2016 with the franchise.  He’d finish with a career high 148 carries for 583 yards and 7 TDs, along with 22 receptions for 107 yards and a TD- in his Frankenstein season between Seattle and GB. Michael signed with the Colts in 2017 but did not see a snap as he was placed on IR before camp began. He made it to the regular season of 2018- but was cut after the first game. Currently he is a free agent.

I got a really nice two for one deal when I bought this little box. Inside was Jarrett Dillard and for the patch card, an autographed Christine Michael. It was quite the charge as these boxes are just supposed to have one autograph and one patch in them, but I’ll take it! This is a great patch card! It’s just the right size where it isn’t jumbo, but at the same time, it’s not too tiny where I feel like I’m just being given a taste. The patch is also a ‘tri-color’ to boot. Otherwise, the design is a bit garish. I was never really too much of a fan of Crown Royale, and the gold fleurons combined with the spiral bound look at the bottom and top of the card, just really doesn’t- sing to me.

NFL

Ambrose, Ashley (2)


Cards: Action Packed Rookies 1992, Classic Blister 1992, GameDay 1992
Acquired: TTM 2018, C/o Colorado
Sent:  3/16   Received: 3/29  (13 days)
See Also: Ashley Ambrose

So Ashley’s autograph has come a long way since 1992 or 1993, when it more or less represented a signature, at least compared to what I got through the mail in 2018.

Since his time as the defensive backs coach for the Golden Bears of Cal, Ashley has been quite busy. He worked as an intern for the Saints in 2013, and followed that up with one year stints with the Idaho Vandals (2014) and Texas State (2015) as their cornerbacks coach. From 2016 to 2017, he coached for the Broncos of Boise State, and currently is at Colorado as their defensive backs coach- a capacity he held with the Buffs way back in 2010.

Ashley gets no respect. The venerable cornerman finished with 42 career interceptions, which is quite respectable in this day and age of football. He had some great cards over the years. After I got his autograph on his Star Pics cards, I had always wanted to get back around to him and get his Action Packed Rookies card signed- really as a set need, however his GameDay card really takes the cake in this spectacular action shot. It’s well framed and the action barely breaks the image plane at the top of the card.

Ashley’s TTM trail had grown cold. I noticed a few attempts through colleges he had previously coached with, so I made sure I had his current whereabouts in mind before I sent this out.