Michael Crabtree and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Really Bad Season

A deadline has been set for Crabtree to sign with the 49ers, and im sure there are a lot of you who are cursing the heavens every time you pull one of his cards. I think Crabtree's stupidity is one of the saddest displays in terms of team relations in a long time, as his agent's greed or his greed are probably going to prevent him from having a productive career wherever he ends up. Really, the most important thing for collectors in this situation is what to expect from his cards if he does go back and re-enters the draft.

Im not quite sure if you can consider this year's cards to be rookies if he is re-drafted by a different team. Obviously, for players who are injured and never make it onto the field in their first season a la Chad Greenway, their cards are still considered rookies, so Crabtree may fall under that umbrella. He will be with a different team, and was not forced off the field in his first year, so he may actually have a few pre-rookie cards and then go to the premiere again next year for his real rookie cards. A player sitting out during the season does have a huge implication on his marketing and card production, so its not yet clear how the companies will react to his decision in the coming months.

Oddly enough, im curious to see if he is even put into the later sets if he decides to be drafted again, as producing cards of him in the wrong uni on purpose could be pretty frustrating to people who pull them. Though, on the other hand, they paid for his jerseys and experience at the premiere, and the cards are in production already in some cases, which brings up more quetions. This could lead to major problems if the situaiton remains at a stalemate.

Regardless of what happens with his contract, Crabtree does have a bunch of talent that could present a favorable opportunity for someone looking to take a chance on him in next year's draft. His primadonna nature has already labeled him as a problem player, which could negatively effect his status even more so than it already has been by sitting out for a year. He has already cost himself millions, if not more that could stem from him not developing at all during his time off the field. Players like Benn, Williams and Bryant will be coming straight from a full year of playing, thus making their untainted ability to be more attractive than Crabtree's ability and lack of humility.

Personally, Id get rid of your stuff while you still can.