What We Pulled:
Packs Per Box: 4
Cards Per Pack: 8
Base Set Completion: 22 out of 100
Redemptions: 1
2011 Sweet Spot Football Sweet Spot Rivalries Book Card Varied #'ing CD #SSR-WJ
Bo Jackson/Herschel Walker
Inserts: 7
Todd McShay Scouting Report (2) - Torry Smith, Mark Ingram
Sweet Spot Sweet Beginnings Autographs (2) - Colin McCarthy, Cecil Shorts
Sweet Spot Rookie Signatures (1) - Ryan Kerrigan
Our Thoughts:
While this would never be considered our favorite Upper Deck product that they put out each and every year, the product is unique due to the Rookie Signatures that they have. I am disappointed in not being able to collect a set of base set cards unless you purchase 5 boxes of this product. That is a major complaint that I have for each and every card manufacturer. I understand that base set cards aren't what the true hardcore collector wants, but completing a 100 card base set should not require that you spend lots of money to do it. This product is the lower end of the one autograph per pack sets, so there should be more value to the product to entice people to buy it. One way to do that is to make the base set easier to obtain.
I do like the fact that the inserts are 1 per pack. Having Todd McShay and Chris Mortensen scouting reports as the inserts does bring a sense of the big time. Almost everybody that follows sports on even a casual level knows about Chris Mortensen and Todd McShay has been a real fine analyst for ESPN for the past couple of years. A big thumbs up for Upper Deck in having those two insert sets.
As for the one autograph per pack gimmick, it is an OK one, but it needs to be rethought. Not the one autograph per pack, but who they are including in the autographs and how they are devising the autograph sets. Maybe do the Top 50 college players in your set as 1st Round Talents. The next 25 as Building Blocks For Success and the last 25 as your Rookie Signatures. I would also do a College Hall of Fame subset of Autographs. As for the autographs on the helmets, the quality control on those leaves something to be desired. Maybe figure out how to put the helmet up further on the card and put the auto below or something. Because I did open a second box and the Christian Ponder signature on the Florida State helmet is a C and a line then a P and an arc. I expect more form the autographs than that.
Overall, while there are some drawbacks, there are some redeeming qualities about the product. I don't need the NFL logo and team symbol on a card to enjoy the product. And the fact that using the college teams for players does make the set seem a little more unique isn't a bad thing. And while I don't like redemptions, I can understand that some have to be included if the item is too big to be included in the packs. If Upper Deck can figure out how to make the autos on the helmets look better, then this product could be one of those that I look forward to each year when it is released.
Box Value: 2.5 out of 5 Stars.
