1955 Bowman football card of former pro end Dorne Dibble, who played 6 seasons in the NFL for the Detroit Lions. His first year of play was 1951, and after serving in the military the following year he returned to the Lions and played from 1953 until 1957. Dibble averaged 17.5 yards per reception in his career, and was a member of the last 2 Detroit championship teams in ’53 and ’57. He died of pneumonia in 2018.
2012 Score football card of former pro quarterback Andrew Luck, who played 7 seasons in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts before abruptly retiring due to recurring injuries. He was a four-time Pro Bowler in those 7 seasons and led the league in passing touchdowns in 2014. Luck is currently serving in an administrative capacity as general manager for football at his alma mater, Stanford. His father Oliver also played quarterback in the NFL, and served in many front office roles in the game, including commissioner of the XFL for 3 years.
1984 Topps football card, from the mullet era, of former pro placekicker Morten Andersen, who amazingly lasted 25 years in the NFL, kicking for 5 different teams. Born in Denmark, he was a 6 time All Pro and 7 time Pro Bowler, a 2 time winner of the Golden Toe Award as the NFL’s best kicker, and was named to the league’s All Decade teams for both the 1980s and 1990s. He currently co-hosts a football podcast with the Vegas Insider Podcast Network. Andersen was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017, only the second kicker to receive that honor.
2003 Bowman Chrome football card of former pro quarterback Tony Romo, who joined the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent and carved out a 13 year career as the team’s field general. He was a four-time Pro Bowler and led the Cowboys to 4 postseason appearances, although postseason success evaded him. Romo still holds some of the team’s passing records. He retired after the 2016 season and entered broadcasting, where he is currently the lead color analyst for CBS NFL games.
1989 Score Supplemental football card of former pro linebacker David Grayson, who played 5 seasons in the NFL for the Cleveland Browns and San Diego Chargers. He was known as a playmaker in his short career, racking up 8 sacks, 3 interceptions and 4 fumble recoveries. His father, Dave Grayson, was a star defensive back in the American Football League and also notched a 6 year NFL career after the 2 leagues merged in the 1970s.
1960 Topps football card of former pro defensive back Johnny Sample, who enjoyed an 11 year career in the NFL and AFL for 4 different franchises. A colorful player, he had the distinction of playing on championship teams in the first and final seasons of his career, in 2 of the most famous games in history, with the 1958 Baltimore Colts in the “Greatest Game Ever Played” and the 1968 New York Jets in their shocking Super Bowl III win. He was on 3 championship teams in all. After his playing career ended, Sample wrote a controversial autobiography titled “Confessions Of A Dirty Ballplayer” . He was the No. 1 ranked professional tennis player in the age 45 and over category, and served as a tennis official. Sample also hosted a talk radio show in Philadelphia, the city he lived in when he passed away in 2005.
1968 Topps football card of former pro flanker Al Denson, who had an uneven 8 year playing career, all but 1 of those seasons with the Denver Broncos. He led the AFL in touchdown receptions in 1967, and was named a league All Star that year and in 1969. Denson was mostly a second option in the passing game on those Bronco teams to Lionel Taylor. In 1970, the first year of the AFL-NFL merger when the 2 leagues became 1, he caught the first NFL touchdown pass in club history, from the late Steve Tensi.
1964 Topps football card of former pro receiver Willard Dewveall, who played 6 years in the NFL and AFL. After a year in the Canadian League playing for Winnipeg, where he helped the Blue Bombers win the Grey Cup, he joined the NFL’s Chicago Bears, spending 2 seasons there before becoming the first player to jump leagues in 1961 when he signed with the AFL’s Houston Oilers. As a favorite target of George Blanda, he helped the Oilers win the AFL title in ’61 and was an AFL All Star in 1962. Dewveall passed away in 2006.
1964 Philadelphia football card of former pro back Don Lisbon, who played briefly in the NFL (2 seasons) with the San Francisco 49ers. He scored 3 touchdowns in his 20 game stay in the lesgue, and also showed some versatility by throwing a touchdown pass. 1964 was his final year in the NFL, but he resurrected his football career in the Canadian League in 1966. Lisbon played for both Montreal and Edmonton there, and was a CFL All Star in ’66.
1973 Topps football card of former pro running back Ron Johnson, who played 7 seasons in the NFL for the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants. He was a first round draft pick of the Browns in 1969, but after a disappointing rookie campaign was traded to the Giants, along with 2 other players, for end Homer Jones. Johnson thrived in New York, earning a pair of Pro Bowl bids and All Pro honors in 1970. After retiring as a player, Johnson started a food service company and eventually owned 13 KFC franchises, and also served as chairman of the foundation that runs the College Football Hall of Fame, of which he is a member. He suffered from Alzheimer’s disease in later years and passed away in 2018.