CARDS: Topps 1982, Topps 1986, Pro Set 1991 ACQUIRED: TTM 2022, C/o Home SENT: 1/17/22 RECEIVED: 2/7/22 (21 days)
CAREER SNAPSHOT:
Jim Haslett played college football at Indiana University of Pennsylvania from 1975-’78.
Played LB, DE, and P for the Crimson Hawks.
Dominant player who etched his name in the school’s record books.
Over 4 years had 35 sacks, 412 tackles, and 13 fumble recoveries.
Selected in the 2nd round of the 1979 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills.
Jim hit the ground running and in his first contest notched a team leading 17 tackles.
In rookie year had 2 interceptions and 2 fumble recoveries playing at LILB.
Alongside fellow Bills players Fred Smerlas and Shane Nelson, they formed the nucleus of the defense’s ‘Bermuda Traingle’ unit.
An aggressive player and big hitter, Jim recorded over 100 tackles 5 times in his career.
He’d play 7 seasons in Buffalo, starting 86 games posting 7.5 sacks, 11 fumble recoveries, and 6 interceptions.
In 1987 he came back for 3 games playing for the New York Jets before moving into the coaching ranks.
After three years working for Buffalo University both as a linebackers coach and defensive coordinator, Jim moved up to the spring football league circuit.
He parlayed his experience in the World League into a positional coaching job in the NFL with the Raiders as a linebackers coach in 1993.
After two years there, Jim spent a year with the Saints as their linebacker coach.
It’d be in 1996 that Haslett experienced his first taste of being a defensive coordinator with the Saints where he saw potent results.
He’d not be retained by the Saints after they cleaned house in ’97, so he spent the next 3 years as the DC of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Saints cleaned house again in 2000, and brought Haslett back to be head coach that year.
Jim led the Saints to their first playoff win that year.
He’d be fired after a tumultuous 2005 season, one in which the team cratered thanks in part to having to relocate temporarily from Hurricane Katrina to San Antonio.
Haslett then was defensive coordinator for the St. Louis Rams from 2006-’08.
Jim replaced Scott Linehan as interim head coach in 2008.
In 2009, Haslett was head coach of the UFL ’09 Florida Tuskers.
From 2010 to ’14 Haslett served as defensive coordinator of the Washington Redskins.
After a consulting gig with Penn State in 2015, Jim served as linebackers coach of the Cincinnati Bengals from 2016-’18.
That’d lead to an inside linebacking coach gig with the Titans in 2020 and 2021.
He then served as head coach of the Seattle Sea Dragons of the XFL in 2023 finishing with a 7-3 record and a playoff berth.
Unfortunately after the league merged with the USFL, the Sea Dragons were not retained.
TAC
SAC
FUM
N/a
7.5
12
NFL
INT
YDS
AVG
TD
6
94
15.6
0
NFL
W
L
T
PCT
47
61
0
.435
NFL
W
L
T
PCT
7
3
0
.700
UFL
W
L
T
PCT
6
0
0
1.000
UFL 09
ACCOLADES:
NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year 1979
IUP Athletics Hall of Fame 1996
NFL Coach of the Year 2000
UFL09 Coach of the Year 2009
College Football Hall of Fame
NOTES:
Jim is one of the many members of the World League pipeline working his way up from the coaching ranks after his playing career ended.
Kerry Collins played QB at Penn State from 1991-’94.
Over his college career his stats increased across the board.
In his Senior campaign in 1994, he completed 176/264 passes for 2,679 yards, 21 TDs to 7 INT.
He’d be the first pick in the history of the Carolina Panthers franchise at #5 overall.
In a historic 1996 season, he led the Panthers to the NFC Championship in just the franchise’s second season.
During 1998, he struggled with alcoholism and considered quitting the game.
The franchise cut him and he finished the season on the roster of the New Orleans Saints.
Over 3 seasons with the Panthers, Kerry threw for 7,295 yards, 39 TDs, and 49 INT and completed 52.6% of his passes.
He briefly played for New Orleans, winning 2 games in 7 contests, while throwing just 4 TDs to 10 INT in 1998.
In 1999, Kerry joined the Giants, and later in the season took over as starter, going 2-5 the rest of the way out.
Kerry led the Giants to the Super Bowl in 2000, as he finished the season 12-4 and threw for 3610 yards (311/529), 22 TDs, and just 13 INT.
He played for the Giants through the 2003 season after the team decided to go in another direction with Kurt Warner and Eli Manning waiting in the wings.
After two middling seasons as a starter in Oakland in 2004 and ’05, the journeyman phase of his career began- but not without controversy.
Collins signed with the Tennessee Titans, who secretly were not completely sold on Vince Young.
He and Vince traded starting duties for the team under HC Jeff Fisher through the 2010 season.
In 2008, he led the team to a 12-3 record completing 242 of 415 passes for 2676 yards and 12 TDs.
After the 2010 season, he announced his retirement.
Signed with the Colts in 2011, and became first quarterback to start for the Colts other than Peyton Manning since 1997 (Jim Harbaugh).
A concussion sustained in late October of that year, ended his season, and ultimately he decided to hang up his cleats.
ACCOLADES:
College Football Hall of Fame
Pro Bowl 1996, ’08
Davey O’Brien Award 1994
Sammy Baugh Trophy 1994
PFWA All-Rookie Team 1995
NOTES:
Kerry owns multiple passing records for both the Panthers and Giants franchises.
Kerry had some really nice cards near the end of his career and I adored all the stuff that came out in 2009 and 2010. Once I saw that he was signing it was a no-brainer to send these cards out and hope for the best.
Kerry’s struggle with alcoholism should not be understated. Although much of it went public, it allowed him to get the help he needed to address his problem, and he aggressively sought treatment in 2000 while with the Giants, and continued to do so over the next 3-4 years.
A talented baseball player, Kerry was selected by both the Detroit Tigers and the Toronto Blue Jays, but opted to play football instead.
After transferring from East Carolina, QB Kurt Benkert got the starting nod at Virginia in 2016.
In 2017, he went 298/509, for 3,207 yards, and 25 TDs to just 9 picks.
He signed as an UDFA with the Atlanta Falcons in 2018 and spent a good time of the season on their practice squad that year.
He spent 2019 on IR with a toe injury sustained in preseason.
Waived in 2020, he then spent the season with the Saints primarily on their practice squad.
In 2021, Benkert joined the Packers, also seeing time on the practice squad.
The 49ers had him for 2022 on and off their practice squad.
Kurt was assigned to the Houston Roughnecks in 2023 to play in the XFL, but refused to report.
After the injury bug hit the San Antonio Brahmas, the team traded for Benkert and he quickly saw the field in 2 contests.
Unfortunately he broke his ribs against the Vipers and was placed on IR.
He opted to retire from the sport in August of that year.
With the Roughnecks staff essentially replacing the Brahmas in 2024, there was renewed interest in keeping Benkert, but it is unknown whether or not he even attended camp.
NOTES:
I went to all the San Antonio Brahmas games in 2023, but since Benkert got a crash course on the offense, came in for Renegades contest, quickly got injured the next week and was not heard from again- I wasn’t able to get his autograph on these cards.
After the Brahmas signed him, I was peppered with Facebook football 101s on how to understand football concepts (basic and advanced) for fans and aspiring Madden players from Kurt, so I decided to buy one. Nestled in the downloadable program, was his address, so I shot these 4 out and he kindly signed them for me.
Celebrating the game, the players, the cards, and the autographs for over 25 years.
