1957 Topps football card of “Johnny U”, Baltimore Colts’ Hall of Fame quarterback John Unitas. This was Unitas’ “rookie” card, since it was the first one made of him. He had been cut by the Steelers because their coach claimed he “wasn’t smart enough”, but after joining the Colts in 1956 he went on to a fantastic career, playing into the 1970s. Unitas was a 3-time NFL Most Valuable Player and a master of the passing game in an era of “three yards and a cloud of dust” football. He was known for his late game-winning drives, the most famous being in the “Greatest Game Ever Played”, the 1958 NFL Championship game, won by the Colts over the Giants. Unitas led a game tying drive at the end of regulation, then a game-winning drive in the league’s first “sudden death” overtime game. He holds an NFL record that may never be broken, even in the pass-happy era of today – he threw touchdown passes in 47 consecutive games between 1956 and 1960. One other note – the white ball Unitas is holding on the card is the “night game” ball used by the NFL in the ’50s to help spectators see the ball during games played under the lights.