Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ... and it might be the biggest edition ever.

BIG SEASON AHEAD?
The Card: Josh Allen 2018 Donruss Optic #154 -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: I pulled a pair of these from a number of rips -- probably deep in the archives here if you poke around -- but I never slabbed any of them back then, instead grading guys like Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield and maybe a Nick Chubb. Meanwhile, it turns out this guy might be The One over the long term from this rookie class. After this past season's successes and close finish at the end, I figured it was time to grade a pair of these and I'm still working through some of my past pulls to see if I need to grade more for this franchise QB.
The Grade: CSG 10

Reality Check: I was happy with this one (and I'll drop my other one here at some point later this season) as Optic stock can be hit and miss, particularly on the backs. Sometimes it's dents and wrinkles or minor dents but this one was clean. It looks like these do grade pretty well with nearly half of them getting this mark. An interesting comparison to make here? PSA has graded more than 2,500 of these with more than half being 10s, while BGS has graded only 160 and SGC has slabbed 320.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Three Macs, one Mega plus NFL chatter and more in this mid-week edition.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Panini Diamond Kings baseball cards (blaster)
First Buzz: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for FOTL)

Keep reading to see a breakdown and gallery of what's in this one.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Aaron Judge hits 50 and remains on pace, NFL and vintage chatter, Michael Harris, 1952 Topps and ... are custom cards overrated?

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What: 2021-22 Panini Spectra basketball cards
Arrives: Sept. 30
Box basics: Four autographs per four-pack box (eight boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Spectra returns for another run on the NBA court with all those hot rookies, legends from the past and an autograph in every pack.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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One of the world's biggest soccer stars is signing for Panini America.

Panini revealed on Monday that Kylian Mbappé signed an exclusive autograph trading card and memorabilia deal. Terms were not disclosed but that will lock him into signing for trading cards in its release and via Panini Authentic, its memorabilia division.

"It is such an honor for me to join the Panini family," Mbappé said in a prepared release. "As a child, I used to collect some of Panini trading cards, dreaming to be represented on these cards one day. Ten years later, here we are!"

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 From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2022 Panini Select WWE wrestling cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (hobby)

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NFL pulls and preseason talk, WWE finds, MLB Hall of Famers sound off, showing off Steph Curry cards and more.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: J-Rod's getting paid, Aaron Judge keeps homering, a juicy rumor, Hard Knocks, new pulls and "the Rookie Card to have is ..."

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2022 Panini Prestige NFL cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Keep reading for a full breakdown of what was in this one along with a gallery of images.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Chasing the Triple Crown, Aaron Judge, 50 top MLB prospects, NFL chatter, Chet Holmgren and "is Shohei Ohtani overrated?"

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Have you seen the latest cool or interesting items on eBay? If not, you just might see some of those here. We’ll spotlight some items that have a story or just wow us with how much interest it might have — and we’re not just talking baseball cards, either.

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IT'S ALMOST TIME ... 
The Item: Kenny Pickett 2022 Panini Prestige Draft Day autographs
The Price: $1,000 Buy-It-Now (or best offer)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I didn't price-check this one but all you need to know is that early in the season if a rookie emerges and only has a few cards available they'll be volatile if there is on-field success. He's got draft picks autos and other sigs here as well as elsewhere but this one is one that shows his first moment as a Pittsburgh Steeler while also having an on-card auto. That top-left corner isn't perfect -- that can come with on-card autos -- but this one seems like one of those kinds of cards with big early potential ... just like him, a home-grown college star at Pitt now possibly walking right into the starting spot for the Pittsburgh Steelers sooner than later. There's a reason his autos all have some interesting asking prices right now -- beyond the fact that the rookie class isn't as loaded as the last couple years. (That's another reason stars could be more volatile this year.) I'm not a buyer here but I think a number of people will be on his stuff. I'm still getting some tastes of 2021 NFL cards, myself.
Similar Pieces: Other 2022 Panini Prestige autos on eBay
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for 2022 Panini Prestige

Keep reading for a few more interesting items in this week's roundup ...

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2021 Panini Chronicles NFL football cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for a few formats)

Keep reading for a breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Chet Holmgren is done, new pulls, a big voided sale, last ones left pay off and more.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2022 Panini Prestige NFL cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Keep reading for a full breakdown of what was in this one along with a gallery of images.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Len Dawson, LIT AF football card chatter, "rock bottom," 1/1 hunts, Donruss Optic NFL coming in hot and ... a Project70 for NBA fans?

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What: 2022 Panini Three & Two baseball cards
Arrives: Sept. 30
Box basics: One slabbed auto card and one slabbed mem card per five-card box (10 boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: This one is dubbed a "release that aims to deliver numerous autographs and memorabilia from today’s top stars and prospects" by Panini America with "autograph content from the who’s who of the baseball world."

Keep reading for more as well as a full gallery of images.

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What: 2022 Panini National Treasures college football cards
Arrives: Oct. 5
Box basics: Seven autographs or memorabilia cards per eight-card box (four boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: National Treasures returns to campus for another run with new draft picks in their school colors in a release that's nearly all hits.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NFL chatter, Kevin Durant, new breaks, Michael Harris, WWE cards and do championships add to card value?

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What: 2022 Panini Elements football cards
Arrives: Sept. 28
Box basics: Two autographs (one metal) and one memorabilia card per five-card box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: The fifth edition of Elements NFL arrives with the same approach as past seasons with new rookies and plenty of hits to be found.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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What: 2021-22 Panini Select basketball cards
Arrives: Sept. 23
Box basics: Three autos or memorabilia cards per 12-pack box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Select once again hits the court with the same formula -- a tiered base set with plenty of parallels -- but a new rookie class and some other surprises from this colorful brand.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images released so far.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NFL preseason, a big grading question, pondering baseball card season, new breaks and more.

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What: 2022 Panini National Treasures FIFA Road to World Cup soccer cards
Arrives: Oct. 19
Box basics: Eight autographs 0r memorabilia cards (and sometimes nine) per 10-card box (four boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: National Treasures hits the pitch once again with the stars of the global game all in one spot as they work toward the World Cup later this year.

Keep reading for more info as well as a gallery of early images.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NFL preseason chatter, "The 2022 Dolphins Pain Train," parallel rainbows, fake cards, "rock bottom" and more.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2021 Panini Chronicles NFL football cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for a few formats)

Keep reading for a breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

Continue reading →