In the past few months I’ve pivoted strongly from collecting cards as an investment to collecting cards as a source of joy. My collecting had become a little too starchy-collared and cold as I’ve aged. After all, if you’re collecting purely as a means to invest, you’re not always buying what you love.

My mindset changed when I was looking through 1990s inserts on Beckett Marketplace and realized that instead of owning one ritzy $200 graded card, I could own several hundred fun singles. I never really had a favorite football player growing up, but Bengals QB Jeff Blake was someone I always appreciated, and he has tons of colorful (and cheap) cards from the whimsical mid-‘90s. Here are some of my favorites that I’ve picked up. I pulled the 1995 Topps Air Raid from a pack of cards at Toys R Us thirty years ago and it’s one of my all-time favorites.

Got this 1996 Pinnacle Trophy Collection card of Bengals QB Jeff Blake. He played a handful of games for the Jets in 1992 and apparently he kept some of his old team’s gear in tow for warmups in cold games. I can’t recall seeing another card picturing a player wearing merch from a former team.