On Draft Day he was "Mr. Irrelevant" -- the last guy that mattered and a bit of a punchline -- but today he's perhaps the NFL's new star on cardboard.

He's San Francisco 49ers rookie quarterback Brock Purdy and after his first career playoff game -- a 41-23 rout of the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday -- he's on the collecting radar even more. He's the lowest-drafted rookie QB to start a playoff game, win one -- something only three rookie non-first-rounders have done -- and that unlikely win is propelling interest in his already popular and relatively scarce overall volume of cards.

Why do we say that? While first-round quarterback Kenny Pickett appears on more than 3,600 different football cards so far, Purdy is at around 400 unique cards from Panini America, Wild Card, Leaf Trading Cards and others in 2022 packed out releases and online-exclusive singles releases. The good news? Almost 300 of those cards are the type that matter most to collectors -- autographs.

It's this overall scarcity that could propel his best cards into the stratosphere if the 49ers make a run this year but also help their values in the future if they come up short -- there's simply far less for collectors to grab vs. other high-profile rookies in 2022 releases. On Friday, the 2022 Panini Certified Mirror Gold Black autograph you see above sold as a PSA 10 on eBay for $22,500 -- and it's not alone being an in-demand card with potential.

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What: 2022 Panini Black football cards
Arrives: Oct. 19
Box basics: One rookie patch auto, one auto and one memorabilia card per five-card box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Black is back for another run on the gridiron with its familiar look but also with "more loaded content, new inserts, and fresh new designs featuring the hottest rookies," according to Panini.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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