Money For Nothing = Chicks For Free

Is your wallet a little lighter than you would want it to be right now? Worried that when the real NFL cards come out in a month that you wont be able to spill all your cheese on cards? Im with you. So, with that, I wanted to give you some little hints on some guys to collect this year that arent named Ryan or McFadden. Most of them will be pretty cheap come july, and may not be in december. Dont buy now because all the stuff out there is crap other than Prestige (the best of the worst), wait for Classics and Threads which will come soon enough.

1. Felix Jones - RB - Cowboys



This guy is already at the middle of the pack (in terms of price) for RCs this year but he is the best middle of the pack-er out there. He is on an amazing team, will get good playing time, and wont have to carry the load all by himself thanks to Barber. Im guessing he will outrush McFadden, and shouldnt have a problem scoring TDs from what I saw at Arkansas. Sometimes it pays to be in someone's shadow. The best thing about this guy? Best auto of the 2008 class, its completely readable and looks like he actually cares (im looking at you Mendenhall, you careless douche).

2. Devin Thomas - WR - Redskins



This guy was the best WR in the draft and he aint gettin much love like most of his WR bretheren. He will put up good numbers this year if he gets the PT and should be the Dwayne Bowe of 2008. If he doesnt start for the first part of the year, dont worry, he will. Jason Campbell is a mid-level QB only because he lacks experience, but with Santana Moss and Clinton Portis drawing defenses away from Thomas, expect big things.

3. Chris Long - DE - Rams



Get 'em while you can. DEs and other DLs never get many autos in products. They have RC stuff and thats pretty much it. See Kevin Williams, Dwight Freeney and Julius Peppers if you dont believe me. Long should be great, and I mean "oh my god" great, so dont hesitate to pick his stuff up. Whats stupid is that he couldnt make the premiere so his stuff will probably be redemptions. Either way, if you see a produced card, jump on it.

4. Chad Henne - QB - Dolphins



The Dolphins suck. They suck BAAAAAAAD. You know who will take the most blame of any player? John Beck. He isnt a top caliber guy and he should have been Brady Quinn if the Dophins were smart. That means when he sucks it up, look for Chad to come in next year and pick up the pieces. I saw Henne play live last year and he looked more pro ready than any guy on the field. I would think that a small investment now, while he is benched, could turn into a nice profit when (not if) he starts.

5. DeSean Jackson - WR - Eagles



Another cheap-o WR that will be VERY good with a good team in philly. He will get PT right away as a punt returner and kick returner, so I would guess that he should get more once he blows everyone away with the speed. I would expect that at first, he will only get a deep ball here and there. But who else to the Eagles have at WR? NO ONE!! Next year will be a great year for him and you may even see him catch on before that. He will get lots of man on man due to westbrook, so I will be expecting good things in the future.

If I Had a Million Dollars...

Well, there is still a ridiculous amount of time until the NFL season is even close to getting started, and naturally I am bored. So I decided to put together my own prospecting sheet for the 2008 season on some players you may want to get your hands on cheaply while you still can...

(In no particular order)

1. Sidney Rice - WR - Vikings



Yeah, yeah, I know, hometown bias. Still, this guy is going to be a beast. In an injury shortened season he led the team in just about everything, even though thats like saying I led my little league team in everything when I was 25. I would say that with Bernard Berrian on the other side of the field and All Day requiring 8-9 in the box every play, he should have a mammoth year. Tarvaris Jackson (another awful, awful first name that should never be used again) should come into his own this season now with a few under his belt. I am one that believes they should have gone for Brohm in the second round, but now we gotta work with him. He definitely has the chops, but maybe not the intelligence. This is a make or break year for him and I would expect Sidney to benefit greatly.

Approx Price for Exquisite Auto /225: 80 dollars
Approx Price for 3 clr SPA: 65 dollars
Approx Price for standard auto: <30

2. Kevin Kolb - QB - Eagles

This guy was a second round pick that I never put much thought into, honestly. This year, however, he is worth more than a thought to the sheep out there. If you guys think Donovan McKneeinjury is going to make it through the year as the QB of this team, forget it. He hasnt played a full season in 3 years, and Mr. Kolb will be the shoulders it all falls on. When this happens his cards will jump and you will profit - even if he does shitty at first. They drafted DeSean Jackson to build up their WR corps, a great move with Westbrook tearing up D's like they are tissue paper. I think by next year Kolb will be a starter for good and you can expect good things from him on a playoff caliber team.

Approx Price for Exquisite Auto /225: 90-100 dollars
Approx Price for 3 clr SPA: 50-60 dollars
Approx Price for standard auto: <30

3. Marshawn Lynch - RB - Buffalo

Im putting Lynch on here because he deserves to be. His cards are already expensive, but to tell you the truth, I think they will be more so come next year. He broke the 1000 yard mark last year with a handful of TDs and you can expect he will do it again. Unlike All Day, he wont face 8-9 in the box every play, so he will have some room to run. I expect him to blow up - and I expect the same thing from his cards. If you have some extra coin laying around, you may want to consider dropping some on his SPA or at the very least, his Limited auto.

Approx Price for Exquisite Auto /99: 400-500 dollars
Approx Price for 3 clr SPA: 300-400 dollars
Approx Price for standard auto: <70

4. Laurence Maroney - RB - Patriots

Maroney is a beast, dont let anyone tell you different. He had an okay first 2 years in the league and will definitely be better come next year. He was kind of the forgotten son of Bellichek's offense, but this year I have a feeling he wont be ignored. His Exquisite is already expensive because he is a Patriot, but his SPA and other autos are still quite affordable. I would check him out and maybe spend the 20 bucks to get his lower end autos.

Approx Price for Exquisite Auto /225: 200-250 dollars
Approx Price for 3 clr SPA: 70-80 dollars (watch out for fakes!!)
Approx Price for standard auto: <40

5. Anthony Gonzalez - WR - Colts

Marvin Harrison likes to shoot his gun and Anthony Gonzalez will benefit. He was a first rounder last year and his non-exquisite stuff is dirt cheap because of the colts depth chart. I would expect him to have a better year mainly due to the fact that his QB is probably the smartest person in the league, and the fact that they love to pass even when ahead - despite having an awesome Joseph Addai. I would say he is a good investment to take a look at.

Approx Price for Exquisite Auto /99: 150-200 dollars (Tier 1 price)
Approx Price for 2 clr SPA: 40-50 dollars
Approx Price for standard auto: <20

Other mentions:

Steve Smith - WR - Giants: Not impressed with play during playoffs or reg season, stuff already at its peak even if he has a good year. Needs a GREAT year for stuff to boom.

Patrick Willis - LB - 49ers: Defensive guys never do much in the hobby with few exceptions. If he has another monster year, expect his stuff to go up - just not that much.

Reggie Bush - RB - Saints: His stuff is so down that it may be the time to get it. If he has even an inkling of a good season his stuff will jump. So many people are sitting on his stuff and waiting, that I think its a good idea to buy low. Its definitely a risk.

Santonio Holmes - WR - Steelers: He's a Steeler so that helps, but the Steelers dont pass much, and when they do its to Hines Ward, so thats bad. He still has major potential, despite having ANOTHER fucking awful first name. Man, some people should not be able to name their kids.

Maurice Jones-Drew - RB - Jaguars: Another great buy, but still very expensive due to a great year last year. I would say that you should wait to see how he does this year before making a large investment. You could save yourself some dough - just a hunch.

You ever get that feeling?

So last year I was going through my possible rosters for fantasy baseball and I saw this guy named Ryan Braun (MIL) listed pretty far down on the projected rankings. Now, I knew from reading prospecting posts on the message boards that he was a top guy for the Brew Crew, but most of us were still thinking Fielder was going to be the man. I remember thinking that despite the monsterous hype around Fielder's power and potentential, Braun was going to be someone that makes the pitcher's hair on the back of his neck stand up.

Ryan realizes he forgot to blow on the ball for good luck... oh well.

Now, let me tell you, I am not a prospector in any way. I dont usually buy into something until it hits the big time - just like many Joe Collectors that are out there. Yet for some reason, I thought this was a guy to jump on. Of course, as a top pick, his stuff wasnt cheap out of 05 Chrome, but it was still a helluva lot cheaper than it is now.

We know the story from there. Out of left field (or third base in his case) he puts together a huge-mungous season and is named ROY ahead of a lot of top candidates. His stuff skyrockets, as it usually does, and we are all left with our feelings of shoulda coulda woulda.

After watching him play a few days ago on my brand spanking new HD LCD, I must say the guy looks pretty fucking amazing. I saw him golf a bomb off of the dirt that I thought was only possible if your name was Vlad, Vladimir, or Vladdy.

So, next time you get that "feeling," remember to invest in it a little. I had the 50 bucks to spend at the time, but I didnt even think twice. Kinda makes me like I missed out on a lot. Well, now I gotta pray that my stash of Matt LaPorta pajamas will pay off.