NFL Hard Knocks 2013 - Recycling of Cincinnati Bengals game jerseys.

[jake33]

That is very true.... NFL fans in general are not big into game used. I don't get that, I think NFL game used jerseys look amazing, way better quality than retail jerseys.

In baseball, players can play 10-15 years regularly, in the NFlL there is no minor league and there really isn't that many "prospects." It is a sink or swim league. And the few guys that are stars in the NFL are big for a VERY VERY brief periods of time, and then the value crashes.
Same with football cards, I don't know how people make money on football cards, one knee injury and a guys value and career is shot.

Also, defensive players are an issue. There are not that many Ray LEwis type guys out there. Guys like Javon Kearse, huge first season but never match his inital value again. I don't like that, the league is about stars and flash and raw emotion, all that doen't seem to hold well for run of the mill guys that can live forever..... Look at guys like Mark Lemke, Dan Johnson, Scott Brocious, Aaron Boone, Bucky Dent, Dave Roberts, guys with a blah career with major feats. Yes, that can happen in football (Larry Brown, Desmond Howard, and Chris Reis to name a few), but not nearly as muich as in baseball.


Football game used items, don't seem to hold weight and in my opinion they show more personality and story than most baseball game used items.

[Anabolicollege17]

Lol anyone remember the John Beck jersey from NFL auctions? That says it all.

But yeah the average NFL fan is happy with a 30$ china knock off nike jersey because its stitched. Only a few of my friends can actually tell a game worn jersey from a fake. And thats because I've showed them what to look for. I like Game worn jerseys of stars like starting QB's because they tell a story about that game they played in, or the career year they had the year that the jersey was worn. Or if there is a special patch added like the awesome vibrant HOF patches last year.

[G1X]

My friends Jake and Anthony said it well in their posts, and it bears repeating. In general, NFL fans are not big into collecting game-used jerseys and helmets, especially when compared to baseball fans/collectors. The game-used hobby is indeed very small in the grand scheme of things. As a collector of game-used football jerseys as well as being a dealer for nearly 40 years, I could spend hours on this subject, but I well keep it very short by stating a few things I have observed over the years that are relevant to this thread:

- "Recycling" football jerseys is nothing new. This has been done since the advent of the game.

- Football jerseys of common and lower tier players do not sell nearly as well as commons/lower tier baseball jerseys. This is especially so with linemen on both sides of the ball and defensive players in general.

- While most collectors in this forum are hard-core collectors and might never dream of wearing the jerseys in their collection, a number of my customers want to wear their jerseys, especially since the prices are usually lower than an authentic retail jersey. Modern-era jerseys are not conducive for wearing because of the cut and fit, especially lineman jerseys and others that have little of no sleeves, so they can be very difficult to sell.

- Jerseys that do not show game wear can be very difficult to sell. Why should the Bengals Team Store (or the Gridiron Exchange, for that matter) take up floor space for something that will most likely not move very quickly?

- Preseason jerseys of players who did not make the roster have very little retail value unless the player is from a large college that has several collectors who specialize in collecting items from that school. Again, why should the Bengals Team Store take up floor space for something that will most likely not sell very quickly?

- Most important of all, please keep in mind that the equipment managers for most teams could not care less about the small world of game-used collectors. I am assuming that they have a budget and are trying to control costs. If a jersey is still usable, what is the incentive to send it upstairs to the Team Store (the store probably does not want this "non-selling" item to begin with) when the equipment staff can simply re-plate the jersey and use it again. To them, it is just a commodity, and if it is still usable, why toss it out? Their concern is outfitting their team, not what Joe Collector is looking for to add to the collection.

The bottom line is that there is not a valid marketing reason for a team to actively pursue selling preseason jerseys of players who were cut. It is not practical to try to satisfy the wants of a handful of collectors. This might sound harsh to some collectors, but the priority of the equipment staff is to outfit the players, not to make collectors happy.

Mark Hayne
Gridiron Exchange
gixc@verizon.net

[abstractheory]

"Unless you are willing to pay several hundred dollars you won't get a Nike jersey today. I'm sure they will be very plentiful in a couple seasons."

Exactly! All these people in love with these new Nike jerseys (still not quite sure why) just need to wait a little. They will soon flood the market just like the Reebok gamers did. Just relax.

[Hoshal13]

Lol anyone remember the John Beck jersey from NFL auctions? That says it all.

But yeah the average NFL fan is happy with a 30$ china knock off nike jersey because its stitched. Only a few of my friends can actually tell a game worn jersey from a fake. And thats because I've showed them what to look for. I like Game worn jerseys of stars like starting QB's because they tell a story about that game they played in, or the career year they had the year that the jersey was worn. Or if there is a special patch added like the awesome vibrant HOF patches last year.

I wonder if that's the Beck I own lol, I didn't pay anywhere near that.

[Anabolicollege17]

Lol nah hosh the Beck was white and game used. It sold for I think 7 grand when he first went to the Dolphins.

[Anabolicollege17]

"Unless you are willing to pay several hundred dollars you won't get a Nike jersey today. I'm sure they will be very plentiful in a couple seasons."

Exactly! All these people in love with these new Nike jerseys (still not quite sure why) just need to wait a little. They will soon flood the market just like the Reebok gamers did. Just relax.

I disagree. No More J.O sports to flood the market. And a ton of teams don't sell them anymore (and a lot of teams recycle). I don't think they will be easy to get at all. You know how many nike jerseys hit eBay from now until release? 15 jerseys. Getting Nike jerseys will not be as easy as it is to get reeboks.

Nike is 100x better than reebok. All I buy is Nike sneakers, I would never ever buy a pair of reeboks. So I guess I'm a Nike loyalist. I think the swoosh on an NFL uniform is the best. Also the quality of the Nike gamers is second to none.

[jake33]

Only 15 Nike jerseys have hit ebay so far?

I just collect Bucs game used jerseys and these have been on ebay.

Dallas Clark Red
Dallas Clark White
Davin joseph White
Gerald McCoy red

So are you saying that 4 of the 15 total Nike game used NFL jerseys to hit ebay were Buccaneers jerseys?

[Mulligans]

I have quite a few GU Nike Jerseys and I certainly wouldn't pay extra for one? IMO.....There is absolutely nothing special about them at all....other than the fact that they seem to rip a lot easier.

I agree....once a couple of years go by, there will be far less of a discussion......Just like all of the Jersey Brands that came before them.

[Anabolicollege17]

Jake Believe it or not I was including those Buccs gamers in on the 15. I saw every single one of those buccs gamers. They are plentiful on NFL auctions but eBay there aren't many at all.

And they do rip a lot easier due to the spandex upper.