SCF Official Review: 2011 Score

[Enigma]

First and foremost, I'd like to thank our sponsors at Panini for providing us with this box.



36 packs per box
7 cards per pack
Current Retail Price (online): $24.99 - $39.99

Product Description

BOX BREAK:
36 Rookies
36 Glossy
6 Hot Rookies
4 Millennium Men
6 In The Zone
4 Complete Players
6 Parallels (Scorecard, Gold Zone, Red Zone, End Zone or Artist Proof)


CASE BREAK:
5 autographs per case


PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS
2011 NFL Rookies - Blaine Gabbert, Cam Newton, Jake Locker, Christian Ponder, Ryan Mallett, Andy Dalton, Colin Kaepernick, Mark Ingram, Mikel LeShoure, Ryan Williams, DeMarco Murray, Daniel Thomas, Kendall Hunter, A.J. Green & Julio Jones

Look for Autographs of Peyton Manning, Adrian Peterson, Matt Ryan, Tony Romo, Drew Brees, Mark Sanchez, Sam Bradford, Calvin Johnson, Philip Rivers, Arian Foster, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Andre Johnson, Tim Tebow, Blaine Gabbert, Jake Locker, Christian Ponder, Ryan Mallett, Andy Dalton, Colin Kaepernick, Mikel LeShoure, Ryan Williams, DeMarco Murray, Daniel Thomas, Kendall Hunter, A.J. Green & Julio Jones

New Inserts - Millennium Men, In The Zone & Complete Players

WHAT WE PULLED



Base - 139/300
Dupes - 0
Rookies - 37/100 (37%)
Dupes - 0
Glossy (36)
Gold Zone (3)
Red Zone (1)
Scorecard (3)



Complete Players (5)
Complete Players Red Zone (1)
Hot Rookies (8)
Hot Rookies Gold Zone (1)
Hot Rookies Scorecard (1)
In The Zone (9)
In The Zone Red Zone (1)
Millennium Men (1)



Dwayne Harris Auto



FINAL RATINGS

Base - 3.5/5
Design - 4/5
Fun - 4.5/5
Value - 1/5
Rebuy - 4/5

Total - 17/25 (68%)

With a name synonymous with sports, Score is back for another year. With its simplistic design, it is a reminder that flashy and showy are not always the best way to make a card. Teams and player names are spelled out in white block letters and the team helmet is in the bottom corner to accentuate the card. Players are shown in action out on the field or via shots from the scouting combine. There are 400 cards overall in the base set split up between 300 veterans and 100 rookies. In addition, each card has six parallel levels, none of which are serial numbered.

Four insert set produce added interest for the pack and box busters. Of the four, only one has a focus on the rookie class (Hot Rookies). Just like the base cards, the same parallel levels (minus Glossy) stretch across all the inserts. And in another similarity, none of the parallels are numbered.

If you are lucky, you might find an autograph in a pack or box. Autos are running 1 in every 144 packs. That is 1 in every 4 boxes. And yes, they are the dreaded sticker variety.

Score has been the king of the mountain for many years when it comes to a low-end product geared toward young collectors. They have used many avenues to capture the attention of youngsters from tattoos, team logo stickers and even eye black. One aspect that made the cards feel special to the younger generation as well as all collectors was the numbered parallels. In a product that is affordable to all, there was a small joy in pulling one of these cards. But that has been yanked from all of us as the serial numbered days are over. So than that begs the question, what makes one parallel better than the other? The one thing (outside of the random auto) that gave Score any sort of value to collectors was stripped away unmercilessly.

Despite that, Score is still a solid product at a very affordable price. Collectors young and old can enjoy putting the sets together without feeling a huge hole in the wallet. While 36 packs is a lot to open for box busters, there is a surprising amount of enjoyment in each pack. Those wanting to have fun collecting can attempt a master set and not worry about low print runs. Just a great reminder that this really is supposed to be a hobby.

Once again, I like to thank our wonderful sponsors at Panini for giving us the opportunity to open and review this release. For more information on all their products, visit them today at www.paniniamerica.net.