Aloha, everybody, The Dodgers have sealed up their shot at the playoffs, and today's final game of the season is pretty much a throwaway, so I figured this would be a good time to show off some football cards that I recently picked up at the card show. The Rams are back in LA, and I'm giving them my allegiance since they were my team before moving away. That said, when the Rams left LA, I became a Raiders fan. The Silver and Black remain my number one team, and theirs are the cards I'm collecting. Of course, my favorite Raiders are the squad that brought a super bowl win to Los Angeles. That day at the show, I decided to pick up cards from that group, and even better if I could get the LA Coliseum as a backdrop.
The Raiders had a few great QBs over their long and storied history. Unfortunately, they had some of their worst when they were in LA. They also had my personal favorite QB, Jim Plunkett.
Speaking of personal faves, here's my vote for the greatest RB of my generation. Mr. Marcus Allen. What a joy it was to watch this man run. Through my binocs, I watched Marcus squeeze through holes that I didn't think a mouse could get through. I wonder if there are any "Air Marcus" cards out there. I've got to get me one of those!
Timmy Brown. Nuff said. And now my all-time favorite Raider. The man who's jersey I wore to every Raiders game...
The Legend...
...and his equally capable counterpart on the other end of the field.
While I wore Howie's jersey, my cousin (RIP) always wore Matt Millen's...
Unsung hero...
Finally, another legend...
Bo wasn't with the Super Bowl Raiders, but of course, he's gonna be in my collection. Boy, he was something to see in action as well. I saw very few of Bo's baseball games, but watched him just about every time he was on the football field. I was at the Coliseum when he suffered his career-ending injury. What a shame. Bo never seemed bitter or resentful that his playing days were cut short, so I'm sure not going to be. I'm just glad I had the pleasure of watching the man play. Aloha!
It's Super Bowl eve, so it's the right time to bust out my humble, but awesome football card collection.
I don't have many cards, but the ones I do have resonate deeply in the football part of my soul.
However, some corners in my soul are dark and ironic...
Sure, I love baseball, but football's past heroes were the ones I grew up watching on Sunday TV and the early years of Monday Night Football..
For several years Super Sunday was a wonderful thing because my favorite team and favorite Purple People Eater - were in the bowl...
Alas, all of those bright Super Bowl afternoons ended in dashed, melancholy nights because of my team's ill-fated quarterback...
For example, one year, it was Tark's bad luck to run into this QB's team of destiny...
Then teenaged me grew up and transferred allegiance to a new team. Rough and tough, with the added grit of knowing how to win the Super Bowl...
If you're going to have a punter in your collection, make sure he's bad-ass...
When the Raiders moved to L.A., that sealed the deal for me.
Back in those days, having the Raiders in my back yard was great for getting in-person autos...
Past players were often available at fanfests...
Here's one for you Chicago readers and bloggers. The other day I was out walking my dog and came upon someone else in the hood who feels big time football love. Check out this custom paint job from a couple of streets over...
Let's close with one more from Johnny U...
...and my favorite pep talk ever. Spoiler, it aint about the Gipper...
