The Panini America QC Gallery: 2011 Plates & Patches Football (39 Must-See Images)
A week from now, Super Bowl XLVI combatants from the New England Patriots and New York Giants will have long since landed in Indianapolis, gone through the rigors of Super Bowl Media Day and will be well on their way to finalizing preparations for the big game itself.
Meanwhile, passionate collectors of those two teams — and every other team in the NFL — will be readying for Super Bowl XLVI like only they can: By feasting on Panini America’s 2011 Plates & Patches Football, which arrives in hobby shops February 1 to kick off the month in spectacular fashion.
Earlier this week, Panini America’s Ben Ecklar and Carlos Torrez got their first live look at the product during a two-case quality-control process that yielded big hits, hot Rookie Cards and some of the most fancily foiled football cards on the planet.
What follows are just some of the splendid hits they discovered. Here’s hoping this gallery is enough to satiate you until next week.