Tag Archives: ttm football autograph

NFL

Barwin, Connor (2) ‘Kramer’

dor&s09 cbarwinCards: Donruss Rookies & Stars 2009, Donruss Gridiron 2009, Topps 2012
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o The Philadelphia Eagles
Sent:  9/22/15     Received: 2/5/16   (136 days)
See Also: Connor Barwin

A lesson in patience, Connor Barwin sports a near perfect response rate through Sportscollectors.net.  To get a better feel for when players respond, I always look at the date that they sign. Do they clump their signings around bye weeks? Do they sign after the season/ before the season? These are things to consider to properly understand your time frame for a response. I know Barwin is a stellar signer, and after a slightly longer than expected wait, the autographs rolled in.

do09 cbarwinWhile Barwin was playing in Houston in 2010, he blew out his ankle during the season opener against Indianapolis. He was in so much pain that it was really sad when they carted him from the field.  Later it was revealed that he was lost for the season. It struck me so deeply that I opened a Twitter account to wish him well and sent my first tweet to him. He recovered from his injury, and was converted to linebacker.

Connor had a banner year in 2011 under new defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, setting a personal best with 11.5 sacks.  Barwin frequently made a mess of the Jaguars, breaking the team record with 4 sacks in one game against Jacksonville.  2012 was a contract year for Barwin, and largely a down one if you consider only sacks.  The Texans hoped to resign him, but wanted to do so at a hometown discount.

to12 cbarwinUnderstanding his value, Barwin signed with the Eagles as a free agent in 2013. Ever gracious, Connor took out a legendary full page ad in the Houston Chronicle thanking the team, the fans, and even Blaine Gabbert (quarterback for Jacksonville at the time) for his time with the Texans.  Barwin has become a fixture in the Eagles defense.. He’d earn his first AP nomination in 2014 after recording 14.5 sacks, and followed that up in 2015 with another 7.

Considered the MVP of the defense, big things are expected of Barwin under new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz in 2016.

 

NFL

Vrabel, Mike

ud081st vrabel

Card: Upper Deck 2006  First Edition
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o The Houston Texans
Sent: 10/13          Received: 10/21              (8 days)

Mike Vrabel was a 3rd round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers out of Ohio State in 1997, where he played primarily on special teams and as a backup linebacker. He joined the Patriots in 2001 and became a key contributor to New England’s underrated defense starting at left linebacker. He’d also see time at ROLB and RILB.  Vrabel earned an AP and Pro Bowl nomination for his 2007 season when he made a career high 12.5 sacks, 55 tackles, and 4 forced fumbles.  He played his final two seasons in 2009 and 2010 for the Kansas City Chiefs. Mike also moonlighted as a tight end for the Patriots and Kansas City in goal line situations catching 14 passes for 10 touchdowns.

In 2011, Mike returned to his Alma Mater Ohio State where he was hired as their linebackers coach. He served in 2012 and 2013 as the Buckeyes defensive line coach.  When Bill O’Brien became head coach of the Houston Texans in 2014, Vrabel moved in to serve as the team’s linebackers coach. He received a lot of exposure in 2015 on HBO’s Hard Knocks shaping the team’s chippy middle four, and turned Whitney Mercilus into a double digit sack threat by the end of the season. After the 2015 campaign, the San Fransisco 49ers offered Vrabel their defensive coordinator position, but he declined the offer and remains on the Texans staff for the 2016 season.

G/Gs 206/140    Tac 740      Sac  57.0       Fum  19
Int 11      Yds  73       Avg 7.3       Td 1        Lg 24t
Rec 14      Yds 10      Avg 1.4      Td  10      Lg 2t

NFL

Dunn, Warrick

ud09 wdunn

Card: Upper Deck 2009
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o Home*
Sent:  1/3/15      Received: 12/7/15   (339 days)
Signing Fee: $10.00

Florida State Seminole Warrick Dunn had an impressive career, rushing for 1,000+ yards in 3 seasons for the school. He also set school records for yards rushing with 3,959, and in a single year with 1,242. Dunn was the first runningback taken off the board in 1997, going with the 12th pick to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  A very deep draft, that was punctuated by notable free agents, other big name backs that came off the board in the first round were Tiki Barber and Corey Dillon.  (This is also notable as it was the first draft that I didn’t watch in 10 years as the Oilers had departed for Tennessee.)

Dunn was a stud in the backfield for the notoriously anemic Buccaneer ground game as outside of a few blips on the radar in the mid-90s from Errict Rhett, the team had failed to field a 1,000 yard rusher or a consistent ground game. At 5-9 there was some concern that Dunn could sustain the number of hits needed for a feature back in the NFL for a 16 game slate.   He combined with fullback Mike Alstott to become a potent 1-2 back combo. Starting 10 games in 1997, Warrick finished with 974 yards rushing, 4 touchdowns, and 462 yards receiving and 3 touchdowns. He’d be named to the Pro Bowl and the Offensive Rookie of the Year at the conclusion of the season. While Warrick churned up the yards from scrimmage over the next two years for the Bucs, he wouldn’t be named back to the Pro Bowl until 2000. In that year he had 1,555 yards from scrimmage and 9 total touchdowns.  After a down season in 2001, Dunn was viewed as a ‘situational player’ by Bucs brass, and was allowed to sign with the Atlanta Falcons.

Opening the 3rd chapter of his football life, Warrick played for the Falcons for 6 seasons. Atlanta promised Dunn at least 20 carries a game, and they delivered on that promise.  Warrick ended up starting 83 games, and  rushing for 5,981 yards and 30 TDs. In addition he caught 204 targets for 1,635 yards, and set a career marks with a 90 yard TD run, and an 86 yard TD reception.  He remained with the franchise through 2008 and was released at his request after the franchise signed free agent Michael Turner. Dunn returned to the Buccaneers that week, and started 6 games that season before calling it a career. Another member of the vaunted 10,000 yard club, his 15,306 yards at the time of his retirement were the most for a player not inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Warrick is extremely active in charitable activities. He has been heavily accoladed for his work from the league earning the Walter Peyton Award (2004), the Home Depot Good Neighbor Award (2006), the Whizzer White Award (2007), and the Bart Starr Award (2008). I donated $10.00 to his foundation for his autograph on this card.

Warrick was who I thought would be my first success of 2015. Instead he returns to me as the 46th. Not that I am complaining. Such is the nature of the hobby. One of my friends later recalled receiving an autograph from Dunn for free, and lamented that he could’ve at least signed his autograph better on mine.  While the check was cashed a clear 2 months before the cards were back in my hands, I nonetheless was happy to get this back.

G/GS  181/154    RUSH 2669    YDS 10,967    AVG 4.1    TD 49   LG 90
REC  510     YDS 4,339      AVG 8.5     TD 15     LG 86