A Far Too Early Mac Jones Rookie Card Recap
In the months and weeks before the start of the 2021 NFL season, he wasn’t a top 5 pick for Rookie of the Year. Even after the first couple of weeks, he wasn’t a popular pick, but collectors who put their money behind Mac Jones rookie cards early on were feeling pretty good as the holidays approached.
It certainly looks like Bill Belichick knew what he was doing when he installed the rookie as his starting quarterback. While he’s a long way from making fans forget Tom Brady, Jones’ poise, confidence and sheer skills are hallmarks of a player who has a chance to enjoy a long and productive career.
Michael McCorkle Jones has come a long way from his early childhood modeling and acting days.
The man known better as Mac is now at the helm of one of the greatest franchises in professional football history as the starting quarterback for the legendary New England Patriots.
The former Alabama signal caller received his college football masters degree studying under Nick Saban and now gets to play under the tutelage of the all-time great coach Bill Belichick at the professional level.
Although rated as one of the top quarterbacks in the 2021 NFL Draft, Jones fell in the laps of the New England Patriots with the 15th overall pick. He was the fifth quarterback selected in the draft and the fourth of an astounding six Alabama players taken in the first round. It’s safe to say if the draft were done today, the order would be much different.
After a solid preseason showing, the rookie was named as the Patriots starting quarterback for week one, becoming the first rookie QB to start a season opener for the Patriots since Drew Bledsoe back in 1993. Jones has already helped lead the Patriots back to prominence.
While many of his best inaugural issues have yet to arrive on the market, here are some early Mac Jones rookie card options:
2021 Immaculate Collection Collegiate #62 Mac Jones JSY AU/99 RC
At a certain point in the sports card release season, collectors begin to steer away from college unis once the brand spanking new players can be found in their official NFL gear. A premium high-end product like Immaculate can be a rare exception that still holds strong value well into the season and beyond. Big Mac is pictured in his Alabama uniform found on a very well put together card featuring a nice piece of Crimson and white jersey coupled with his big, swooping good looking autograph. This issue could stand as a cornerstone for any serious Mac Jones collection for years to come whether he’s in his Alabama gear or not.
2021 Panini Gold Standard #105 Mac Jones RC–
The classic Gold Standard foil is displayed here with Mac in practice gear wearing a jersey better suited for a center. Big number 50 is getting ready to launch a ball downfield for a completion or an incompletion that will have Coach Belichick in his earhole. This is a nice mid-level pickup found somewhere between the high end Immaculate and National Treasures and a lower end of base Panini products such as Score, Donruss and the like. As the rest of the card season plays out, this one will still hold its place somewhere in the middle of the pack.
2021 Donruss #255 Mac Jones RR RC
Speaking of early lower end releases, this base Donruss Mac rookie really caught fire right out of the gate. Collectors were drawn to it being an early release in his Patriots uniform coupled with the classic Donruss brand and the famous Rated Rookie logo. This is a solid pickup that already won’t sell for as cheap as you might think, but is still a lower end option. This one will also be a card that collectors come back to as Jones’ career plays out in the years to come for a nice, yet relatively cheap option.
Early Rookie Year Super Sized Big Mac Sales
2021 Donruss Press Proof Gold Mac Jones #/50 PSA 10
Someone has a lot of confidence in Jones as a long-term play. On November 28, this PSA 10 graded Donruss Press Proof Gold numbered to 48 out of 50 sold for an astounding $10,300 as it garnered 87 bids on eBay. This is a huge early sale for this low to mid level product.
2021 Panini Flawless Collegiate Flawless Rookie Gems Signatures Platinum #81 Mac Jones AU 1/1
Collectors hunting for Jones 1 of 1s had this card on their radar and on December 5, it found a new home. A sharp looking high-end issue, it features a gem stone and an on-card autograph with Mac pictured in his college unifrom. It sold at auction for a very impressive $14,000.
2021 Panini Black Sizeable Rookie Jersey Signatures Gold #5 Mac Jones #/2
One of the two copies of this card that were produced by Panini sold on eBay for a near five-figure price. The Nike swoosh patch combined with a die-cut image of Jones on acetate finish turned it into a very striking rookie card issue.
One of the few high-end cards offered thus far that features Jones in his NFL uniform, the picture may look familiar as its the same one used on numerous early Jones releases. There are numbered Rookie Jersey options of this same card that won’t set you back quite as much.
2021 Absolute Rookie Premiere Material Autographs Five Tag #209 Mac Jones 1/1
This is a true one of one that has five very specific, very rare uniform tags attached to the card. It features the classic NFL shield, the jersey size swatch, the NFLPA logo swatch, the iconic Nike swoosh and a laundry tag from a Mac jersey. It’s accompanied with a sticker autograph of Jones and the extremely desirable cursive 1 of 1 stamp. It sold online for north of $9,000 on December 8.
A couple of other 1/1 Jones cards pulled and listed include the Gold Standard NFL Shield/Nike Logo RPA and the Donruss Phenoms Laundry Tag
You can check out a live list of the current most watched Mac Jones rookie card auctions on eBay directly below and see all of the listings here.
About Tony Reid
From the time he was a little kid, Tony has been a huge sports fan. If he could play sports, watch sports and talk about sports it was a great day. From as early as he was drawn to sports, Tony was drawn to collecting sports cards. Not much has changed over the years. He collects RCs of star players in baseball, basketball and football. He also has a soft spot for first autographs of MMA stars. If you want to talk to Tony about the greatness of Michael Jordan, Bo Jackson or Ken Griffey, Jr. you can reach him at @reidrattlecage on all social media platforms.
