Tag Archives: topps 1970

AFL, NFL

Snell, Matt

Cards: Topps 1970, Pro Set SuperBowl III
Acquired: TTM 2018, C/o Work
Sent: 7/16 Received: 7/24 (8 days)

Matt Snell played for the New York Jets from 1964 to 1972 during the wildcatting days of the AFL NFL rivalry, when the leagues used to poach each other’s talent. Matt was drafted out of Ohio State where he had a prestigious career playing fullback, halfback, and defensive end.

The quandary was, who to play for, as both the New York Jets (AFL) and the New York Giants (NFL) had selected Matt. Matt in the end was offered substantially more to play fullback for the Jets than the Giants so he joined the AFL, where he literally ran away with Rookie of the Year Honors in the young league and captured a Pro Bowl berth. In 14 contests he’d rush for 948 yards and 5 TDs on 215 carries. He’d also be a threat out of the backfield catching 56 passes for 393 yards and a TD, and lead the league in touches that year with a combined 278. Snell had equally impressive campaigns in 1965 (763 yards rushing, 1027 yards from scrimmage) and 1966 (644 yards rushing, 48 receptions, 990 yards from scrimmage, 8 total touchdowns), earning a Pro Bowl nomination in the latter. In 1967, Matt played in only 7 games due to a knee injury, but he quickly returned to form in 1968 with 747 yards on the ground and a career high 6 TDs rushing. He’d have another exemplary season in 69 with 695 yards rushing as well, earning both Pro Bowl and All-AFL Honors.

His crowning moment came in the final game before the AFL-NFL merger-Super Bowl III. After Joe Namath made his ‘guarantee’, the Jets had to figure out a way to come through on it against the vaunted Baltimore Colts. Snell ran for 121 yards on 30 carries, and the Jets only TD- good enough to help the Jets win the Super Bowl 16-7. Despite Snell’s record setting performance the MVP honor would be bestowed upon Namath. 

Matt played for the Jets for 3 more injury riddled seasons, retiring after the 1972 season. Since his playing days, Snell shrewdly invested his money in different ventures. He has been named into the Jets’ Ring of Honor and Ohio State All-Century Team.

I almost went for Don Maynard on this Super Bowl III card strictly because he’s on the image, but then I remembered how Snell didn’t get the MVP and would make a better selection for the card. I really like Snell’s Topps 1970 card. It is a bit funny because you can see his watch clearly in the snapshot. Matt is great to the TTM community and responded in no time flat to my request.

G/GSRUSHYDSAVGTDLG
86/75105742854.12460
RECYDSAVGTDLG
19313757.1754
NFL, Pro Football HoF

Hanburger, Chris ‘The Hangman’

Card: Topps 1970
Acquired: TTM 2018, C/o Home
Sent: 7/9 Received: 7/19      (10 days)

Chris Hanburger thought the door had closed on his attempts to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame- so he was pleasantly surprised to get the nod as a Seniors candidate in 2011. It’s a great story really. Chris has been so good to the TTM community and fans for years, so it was long overdue that the Redskins linebacker received the honor after his accolade laden career concluded. 

I mean, who knows if much was expected from the little known 18th round selection out of North Carolina in 1965. Regardless, Chris put together a remarkable 14 year career with 9 Pro Bowl nominations (1966-1969, 1972-1976) and All-Pro Honors (69, 72, 73, and 75) setting the standard for professional play at outside linebacker, durability (135 straight games started), and as a member of the Redskins’ Over the Hill Gang.

I had been wanting to get Chris’ autograph for a while, but had to find the perfect card to get signed. I had no clue that he had a Topps 1970- but considering that he was playing during that period, I should have assumed that there was this great golden era card. It was nice of him to personalize and put an inscription to the card- but it’s too bad that the inscription was slightly smudged.

G/GSTACSACFUMINTYDSAVGTDLG
187/177N/AN/A171934718.3245
NFL, Pro Football HoF

Barney, Lem


Cards: Topps 1970, Upper Deck Legends 1997, ProLine 1992
Acquired: TTM 2018, C/o Home
Sent:  6/11    Received:  6/25        (14 days)*
* Donation included

When you talk about a player- a throwback- somebody who played for ‘the love of the game first’, one of the first names that should come to mind, is Hall of Fame inductee Lem Barney.  One of the greats of his position it just so happened he played in a studded secondary with Dick LeBeau and Dick ‘Night Train’ Lane while with the Detroit Lions.  Lem did it all for the Lions from 1967 to 1977, playing corner, return man, and even moonlighting as a punter. A man about town, Lem was good friends with singer Marvin Gaye, and had a great set of pipes, singing backup on one of Gaye’s tunes, and tried his hand in acting as well.

His first season in the NFL was- well- easy.  He led the NFL in interceptions with 10, returned 3 of them for TDs and earned NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Honors. Over the next 3 following seasons, Lem added 22 more interceptions to his resume.  During his storied career he posted 11 career touchdowns on 7 interceptions, a kick off return, a blocked FG, and 2 punt returns, earning all-NFL Honors in 1968, 1969, 1972, and 1975.

It’s surprising that Barney did not attract more attention before he was selected by the Lions in the second round. Playing for Jackson State, Lem racked up 26 interceptions, and earned All-Southwestern Athletic Conference Honors.

His career came to a ignominious halt in 1978 after he was heard on tape during a wiretap investigation. While Barney was not part of the investigation, the press focused squarely on him which may have made both the Lions and other NFL teams skittish to sign him. Lem retired in 1979.

That didn’t stop Barney from accomplishing all the things he wanted to do in life however. He has spent a lot of his time in PR, marketing, and broadcasting. Lem is good to the TTM community, however he requires a $15.00 fee. It was very kind of him to inscribe these cards with his HOF information, although- unlike most collectors it’s appreciated but not necessary.

As far as these cards go, Barney had very few actual action shots because well Topps didn’t go out of their way back then, so in steps my favorite classic set Topps 1970 with that great press pass looking image of Lem. I can’t really complain. The Upper Deck Legends card was a really clean action shot of Lem- and it is a set I like to get as well. The design of the card (on the front) is almost second to none and has been emulated over the years. The ProLine NFL Throwback was a curious choice for the third autograph. I always maligned the set, because it was the NFL- but it typically was NFL players doing things other than NFL, so it was sort of an oddity at the time of collecting in the early 90s. This card of Lem however, with the trench coat and bowler hat is absolutely classy, and it seems to really capture the style and the subliminal statement that the set was trying to project on the canvas in encapsulating the players’ voices.

G/Gs 140/136     TAC  N/a     SAC N/a     FUM 25
INT 56        YDS 1077       AVG 19.2      TD   7     LG 71T

KR  50     YDS  1274     AVG 25.5     TD 1    LG 98T
PR   143    YDS 1312   AVG 9.2        TD  2    LG 74T

P 113     YDS   4006     AVG 35.5    LG 55   BLK 1