1989 Pro Set Football Pack Rip

I hardly ever post a pack rip on this blog. And I hardly collect football cards. So why in the world am I posting a pack rip of football cards today? 

 

I'll tell you why.

 

A couple of months ago I saw some 1989 Pro Set football cards on a social media page, and was hit by a strong memory of collecting these cards with my stepbrother back in '89. That memory took me right to where we were living, what grade I was in, and the cabinet in my stepbrother's room where he kept his cards (along with a few of those new, fancy music playback devices called "compact discs"). I also remember actually watching and enjoying the sport of football back then.

 

Unfortunately, I don't have those '89 Pro Set cards anymore. And maybe that's why the nostalgia hit so surprisingly hard. I soon found myself searching for some sealed packs on eBay. It didn't take long before I found a few at a reasonable price—Series I and Series II—and went for it.

 

When the packs arrived, it was standard procedure: 

 

(1) Set a few aside, to remain sealed.

(2) Open one of each series for that big hit of nostalgia.

Here are the results.

 

Series I 

 

 

Aside from the Super Bowl X card, which was an insert, there was nothing very memorable in that pack. So I'll mention that the big cards to pull in Series I included rookie cards of Thurman Thomas, Ickey Woods, Michael Irvin, Tim Brown, and Cris Carter. I also remember Christian Okoye, Brian Bosworth, Joe Montana, and Jerry Rice being hot cards to pull.

Series II

 

 

 

Oof. Another stinker. The big cards in Series II that I was hoping to find include rookie cards of Deion Sanders, Troy Aikman, Barry Sanders, and Andre Rison.

 

Here's an image of a card back.

 

 

 

Full marks to Pro Set here for the detailed write-up and color headshot. They even managed to get the team helmet in there, as well as the Pro Set and NFLPA logos. And note the text across the top in that orange banner: THE OFFICIAL NFL CARD. This wasn't just a bold statement created by the Pro Set marketing team. The company actually had a licensing agreement with NFL Properties, which allowed them to state their official association with the league. Pretty cool for a fledgling company like Pro Set, don't you think?

Now here's an example of the "playbook" that was inserted one per pack.

 

Open the little booklet, and you'll find two scratch-off game pieces. Because my packs were such duds, I actually scratched off the foil in one of the playbooks to see what was underneath.

 

 

 

Man, even my game results were duds. I earned just one point on the left, and received the "Incomplete pass. Try again!" message on the right.

 

Regardless, a scratch-off game in the 1980s meant extra fun for the kid collector. Full credit to Pro Set there, too!

 

 

And there you have it. Did the two uneventful packs sap some of my mojo and nostalgia?  A little bit, I have to admit. Am I tempted to open one or two of the other packs I purchased, to try to find at least some kind of star player or rookie card? 

 

Yes. 

 

So perhaps I'll do that later on in the football season.

 

How about you readers? Do you remember the popularity of the inaugural Pro Set football release? Who was your favorite team or favorite player back then?

 

Share in the comment section, and thanks for reading.