Tag Archives: ttm autograph

NFL

Carr, Derek

leaf14 dercarrCard: Leaf Draft 2014
Acquired: 2014, C/o the Oakland Raiders
Sent: 10/6           Received: 10/22     (16 days)

Derek Carr had an impressive career at Fresno State playing for the Bulldogs. He shattered many of the records previously held by his brother David at his Alma Mater. In his Senior season, Derek led the nation in pass attempts (454), yards (5,083) , and touchdowns (50), and finished 8th in Heisman voting.  He posted decent numbers at the combine, and was drafted near the top of the 2nd round of the 2013 NFL draft.

Considered one of the top quarterbacks of the NFL draft, Derek was rumored to be on many team’s shortlists, and with the Houston Texans dealing with their sudden implosion at quarterback with Matt Schaub and a new coach, that the Texans would possibly take a flyer on him. I didn’t believe that for a second. Everybody knew in the Texans’ organization that if they took Derek Carr, there’d be riots in the streets with loinclothed savages turning over vehicles. You see Derek’s older brother David, was the Texans’ first quarterback ever, and he got a bad wrap as a starter in Houston taking all those sacks and dealing with that wonky delivery.

The Raiders thankfully took Carr near the top of round 2. He had a pretty solid season for the franchise going 348/599 for 3,270 yards, 21 TDs to 12 picks. Derek won 3 games his rookie year. His best game came against the Chargers in week 6 when he threw for 282 yards and 4 TDs.  Frankly based on the lack of talent that was around him he did pretty well and all signs point to up for Derek as the Raiders continue to build an offensive nucleus around him.

NFL, Super Bowl MVP

Manning, Eli

dor&s09 emanningCards: Donruss Rookies & Stars 2009, Donruss Rookies & Stars 2010.
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o Home
Sent: 5/27   Received:  6/18      (24 days)

Less than a week after wrapping up the crown jewel of in person autographs for 2015, lo and behold, the arrival of Eli Manning TTM. I had seen a lot of recent successes for the enigmatic signer and decided to take a stab.  Eli Manning actually first garnered my attention when he was at Ole Miss. I was working on Tecmo Fiesta Bowl for a front end- that the programmer later dropped off the face of the Earth on, and input Manning’s out of sight abilities. (He was basically Dan Marino from Tecmo Bowl playing with a bunch of scrubs.) I knew he was going to be a good player in the pros. It also helped that he’s the son of former quarterback Archie Manning, and the younger brother of Peyton Manning.

Originally the #1 overall choice of the San Diego Chargers in 2004, Manning refused to play for the team due to organizational differences. It was rumored that the elder Archie did not want his son to play for a perennial loser or for defensive mided coach Marty Schottenheimer– but in reality, the Chargers had orchestrated a trade with the Giants well before the draft, if New York could wrangle in QB Philip Rivers and toss in a few picks to quickly rebuild the moribund Charger franchise. While the Mannings took a lot of flak from fans and the press for their percieved behavior,  it was fait accompli between the Giants and Chargers.  As Manning got off to a rocky start his rookie season, with 6 TDs to 9 picks, and 48.9 completion percentage, San Diego appeared to have made the better deal and Giants fans were murmuring, but once Manning established himself as the starter, he became one of the league’s ironmen under center starting 167 straight games, through the 2014 season. In 9 of his next 10 seasons, he attempted more than 500 passes.

dor&s10 emanningManning came of age in 2007, leading the Giants to a Super Bowl win (XLII) over the previously undefeated New England Patriots, 17-14. He’d be named MVP after going 19/34 for 255 yards, with 2 TDs and a pick.  The season ending victory was a bittersweet culmination of sorts for the Giants and Manning. He had been maligned in the media,  by fans, management, and even by former teammate Tiki Barber.  In 2011, the Giants repeated again as Super Bowl Champions over the Patriots, this time 21-17. Eli took home his second MVP trophy after going 30/40 for 296 yards and a TD. Although his numbers took a precipitous slide in 2013 as he led the league for the 3rd time in his career in interceptions, Eli’s numbers recovered nicely to form in 2014.

Manning holds many Giants’, NFL, and postseason records. He is considered one of the most clutch quarterbacks in the league (NFL record 15 4th quarter TDs and 8 game winning drives in a season in 2011).

 

CFL, NFL, WLAF

Brown, Marlon ‘Spacedog’

psetwlaf91 mbrownCards: ProSet WLAF 1991, ProSet WLAF 1991 World Bowl, Ultimate WLAF 1992.
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o Home
Sent: 5/15    Received: 6/8  (24 days)

Marlon Brown is a member of the deep 1989 NFL class. He was a 12th round pick of the Cleveland Browns after setting the Memphis school record with 19 sacks. His career highlights include a 4 sack performance against Louisville, which garnered him Associated Press Defensive Player of the Week Honors in 1987.   Brown joined the British Columbia Lions of the CFL in 1990 as a defensive end, recording 3 sacks and 7 tackles.

pset91 mbrown WBWith the unveiling of the WLAF in 1991, the London Monarchs selected Brown with the 4th overall pick among linebackers in the inaugural positional draft.  A key component to the Monarchs’ WLAF title run in 1991 and top rated defense, Marlon Brown finished on the All-World League Second Team.  Spacedog had 42 tackles and 7.5 sacks. His 5.5 sacks in a 22-7 win over North American rival New York-New Jersey stand as a single game league record, and he was named player of the week.  In World Bowl I, Marlon also contributed a sack in the Monarchs 21-0 shutout of the Dragons.

Marlon was traded after the season concluded. His fortunes basically went from first to worst, as he’d join the Ohio Glory. He finished his career in the WLAF as a member of the New York-New Jersey Knights.

ultwlaf92 mbrownFrom time to time I network with other collectors about the hobby. I’ve always admired Mark’s Signing Bonus. As a respected collector, I think he is a wonderful resource who cares about TTM and autographs as much as I do. I finally worked around to asking him about a few player successes he had, chief among them- Marlon. (I had emailed a lead  before, but it turned out to be a case of mistaken identity.)  Mark kindly helped me out and before I knew it, Spacedog had responded and included a nice note asking for a copy of his WLAF Ultimate 1992 card.

Marlon barely has even noticed that almost 25 years have passed. He’s still in pretty good physical shape and runs his own trucking business out of Memphis that keeps him on the road a good portion of his time.

CFL   G  5     Tac  7      Sac   3.0    Fum N/a
Int  0     Yds 0     Avg -.-      Td 0     Lg -.-

WLAF         Tac  42     Sac 7.5      Fum  N/a
Int  0      Yds 0    Avg -.-       Td 0      Lg -.-