Tag Archives: kansas city chiefs

NFL

Dishman, Cris (2)

Cards:  Action Packed 1992, Fleer 1995
Acquired:  TTM 2011, C/o The San Diego Chargers
Sent: 10/7    Received: 10/27   (20 days)
Failure: TTM 2010, C/o The San Diego Chargers
See Also: Cris Dishman, Dish (3)

Well I thought I’d give Cris another shot with less cards. After making a big blitz of former Oilers in 2010, I was surprised not to receive anything back from Cris Dishman courtesy of the Chargers. I tended to other stuff but when I published my master list of Oilers that I had gotten on Fanmail, they told me that Cris was easy to get, so I planned on reloading and trying again. He was on the back burner for a couple of months here until I joined SotL at Bubba Mcdowell‘s recommendation, to where I found the Facebook heaven for football players. Seeing that Cris was on here and that he was active- I decided to go ahead and give him another shot on these two cards.

At that time, I really liked what Fleer was doing with their 1995 set. It was really daring to have the information on the front of the card like that and the player name and team information really reminded me of Skybox’s 1992 release. Crystal clear photography also really assisted as well in the production of this piece. The Action Packed 1992 card was right at the end of what I felt was their best work. Already in their 1991 offering, they had annoyingly decided to flip the stats on the back, in landscape form from left to right on random cards, and they continued this trend in 1992, and by 1993 I was out of the market.

Cris Dishman engages his fans on Sotl which is refreshing. When I asked him what his favorite memory was about playing football outside of being drafted, he said it was the comradery of the locker room after games that no business could ever match.  He filled my request through the Chargers in roughly 20 days.

NFL, WLAF

Riley, Andre

Card: Ultimate 1992
Acquired: TTM 2011, C/o Washington IMG Marketing
Sent: 8/6    Received: 9/1  (25 days)
Failure: TTM 2011, KSBG Radio

A legend of the Washington Huskies program during the late 80s and early 90s, Andre Riley was the first player to ever surpass 1,000 yards receiving for the college. His senior season at Washington Andre led his team with 53 receptions for 1039 yards and 4 touchdowns. Initially a runningback, Riley converted to wide receiver and helped galvanize the squad towards their 1990 Rose Bowl Championship.

Andre would be drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals during the 12th round of the 1990 draft, but with a log jam at wide receiver behind Eddie Brown and Tim McGee, Riley would not make the squad.  He wouldn’t be out of work long when the London Monarchs would dial his number up in the second round of the wide receiver portion of the WLAF positional draft in 1991.

Finding a home on the London Monarchs, Andre would be part of a dynamic wide receiver pool of Dana Brinson, Jon Horton, and Tony Sargent. With quarterback Stan Gelbaugh throwing the rock all day, Riley would finish 3rd on the squad in 1991 with 30 receptions for 506 yards, a 16.9 yard average and 4 touchdowns- a number that would be considered starter quality anywhere else in the league. His best game perhaps came against the Knights, in a contest where he had 6 catches for 78 yards and a TD. At the conclusion of the season, he’d help his team down the Barcelona Dragons and win World Bowl I 21-7 in London.

He’d return stateside after the season, briefly playing for the Kansas City Chiefs and retire. Since that time Andre has been involved in marketing, working as a General Sales Manager for KBSG radio in Seattle and currently works for Washington IMG Marketing. I sent off for his card earlier this year to KBSG but got a response back from them indicating that he was no longer with the station. After doing more research I found another address at Washington IMG Marketing and took a stab there. Riley was kind enough to reply under a month, thanking me for remembering him and the league, and the extra card that he had already given to his daughter.  -A really nice return. Below are his WLAF statistics:

G 10   Rec 30    Yds  506     Avg 16.9     Td  4      Lg 62t

 

NFL, WLAF

Valerio, Joe

Cards: StarPics 1991, Wild Card WLAF 1992
Acquired: TTM 2011, C/o www.joe73.com
Sent: 8/27/10    Received: 8/18/11  (356 days)

Originally selected by the Chiefs in the 2nd round of the 1991 draft along with Harvey Williams (1st) and Tim Barnett (3rd) Joe Valerio was a small school product out of Pennsylvania that made waves at the combine with his 6-5, 292 frame. A two time NCAA I-AA All-American he’d be allocated by the Chiefs to the WLAF for the 1992 season.

The Chiefs -pleased with the progress of linebacker Tracy Simien, felt that Joe would be a good fit in the World League. He’d get valuable starting time with the Birmingham Fire, under head coach Chan Gailey, blocking for quarterback Mike Norseth and runningback Elroy Harris that season as the team made the playoffs with a 7-2-1 record. After the league was reorganized in 1992 he’d return to the Chiefs and start 3 games that season.  Valerio would remain on the line of the Chiefs as a valuable back up through 1995, before signing with the St. Louis Rams in 1996, and retiring after that season. Throughout his career he’d play every position on the offensive line, including tight end.  He’d also make 4 receptions for 7 yards and 4 touchdowns on tackle eligible plays for the Chiefs, (-all from Joe Montana which is the most that Montana threw to any lineman).

Since then Joe has gone into motivational speaking through Gridiron Concepts. He’s also a manager for Wells Fargo, coaches, and works avidly on his foundation. A popular member of the Kansas City Chiefs, Valerio also did radio and tv for a stint. I sent off for his autograph through his website at joe73.com last year, and gave up after about 6 months, so I was really pleased to open up an envelope and find these two cards autographed for me, in just a shade under a year.