The Panini America Insert Inspection: 2012 Prestige Football Draft Day Materials

Long before Andrew Luck slipped into his full NFL uniform for the first time a few weeks ago at the 2012 NFLPA Rookie Premiere, he'd already made history with a different jersey. The one he received directly from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell as the No. 1 pick of the Indianapolis Colts in the 2012 NFL Draft.

Long before Andrew Luck slipped into his full NFL uniform for the first time a few weeks ago at the 2012 NFLPA Rookie Premiere, he’d already made history with a different jersey. The one he received directly from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell as the No. 1 pick of the Indianapolis Colts in the 2012 NFL Draft.

It’s the one Luck proudly hoisted for the world to see that late-April evening, standing center stage in New York City’s fabled Radio City Music Hall. He also donned some history-making headwear that night, too.

The other young first-round superstars selected after Luck — including the electrifying Robert Griffin III, Trent Richardson, Justin Blackmon, Morris Claiborne and 15 others — followed suit in their suits, clutching their personalized-on-the-spot Nike jerseys for the grip-and-grin photos that will be remembered forever.

In all, 20 first-round selections crossed the stage on April 26 and stepped into their NFL careers. Those history-soaked jerseys and hats, however, didn’t accompany them. Instead, they were expedited by NFL officials to Panini America headquarters to begin their own epic journey — as the centerpiece memorabilia for the 20-card Draft Day Materials insert in the upcoming 2012 Prestige Football set.

Hey, being the official trading card of the NFL Draft has its advantages.

To satiate anxious football collectors waiting on pins and needles for the June 20 launch of Prestige, we thought we’d share images of the memorabilia along with the Draft Day Materials design into which it will be embedded. We’ve also included some additional images that showcase some of the new features of the Nike tops.

Enjoy. And stay tuned to The Knight’s Lance as the countdown to 2012 Prestige Football continues.

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18 Replies to “The Panini America Insert Inspection: 2012 Prestige Football Draft Day Materials”

  1. As a Packer fan, I am glad to see Nick Perry will have at least one MEM card this year, since most defensive players don’t. Would be cool if we could get some MEM cards of rookie defenders with action shots from games or practices too! The draft poses are cool, but an action shot MEM card in a later set would also be awesome. Keep it up!!

  2. Nice. For some of these guys (like Nick Perry), these might be the only relic cards they ever have since they weren’t at the Rookie Premiere. And perhaps (because of their position or other factors) won’t ever get any veteran jersey cards either.

  3. Tracy,
    This set is awesome, I had asked you earlier about what happens to all those draft items and you have answered in a big way.
    You know I can’t wait to get my hands on those Tannehill draft cards.
    Will any of these be autographed as well?
    Thanks and I cannot wait.
    T

  4. Wow i had no idea, That is probably the coolest thing i have ever heard about memoriablia cards!!! That makes those cards truly special in there own way!!! Tracy is this the first time this is ever being done with the jerseys from the Draft???

  5. I feel like you design team has really stepped it up this year with Prestige. The cards look nice and clean. Truthfully from what I’ve seen it could pass as one of your high-end products. Keep up the nice work on future releases as well.

  6. So excited that Quinton Coples will have at least this Relic card this year!!!
    J-E-T-S Jets Jets Jets!!! Thanks Panini!

  7. I have always been a fan of Prestige; as the first real product of the season Prestige SHOULD be special! I make it a point to purchase a box or 4 for that reason. Therefore, as another post mentioned, I am thrilled to see that the product is being ramped-up. The draft-day materials look like they will be an exciting component to sharia really a pivotal product.
    Thanks for the gallery, Tracy!

  8. Man Tracy, after seeing these pics and after you told us how excited you are to show us pics of the Prestige RCs, i am even more excited than i already was to bust alot of boxes of Prestige!!! Prestige has always been a important product for me because its the hobbys first REAL DEAL NFL rookie cards of the season and with this years rookie class, it cant get better than this! Big props to the Panini design team and June 20th cant get here fast enough!

  9. I know you’ve done this before, but I want it to be known that it is great to have the actual jersey embedded into the card pictured. I know you did it with game worn memorabilia in a product last season (Threads was it?) and I’d love to see the picture and embedded memorabilia match up as often as possible when using game used memorabilia.

    Prestige looks fantastic this year, by the way.

  10. Great acquisitions, I like the knowing exactly where the specific piece of memorabilia came from like last year’s Timeless Treasures. It gives the card an added degree of authenticity and a better sense of how the card came to be. Thanks for this info Tracy!

  11. Tracy.. What are you guys gonna do with the #1 on RG3 shoulders? They look awful big to be on a single card, and you couldnt cut them with them being signed by him. Just a thought a I had, and are you guys don any contests with give aways from the Rookie photo shoot? I know you guys get all the pictures and hats signed and was just wondering if anything from claiborne or any other tops guys was gonna be given a way in a contest. Is Prestige set to release anytime soon, cant wait for this one. I know its not huge but def gonna grab my Cowboys cards and hope to snag a few good autos.

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