THE NFL WAS FORMED 100 YEARS AGO AS THE AMERICAN PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION. A LOOK AT RELATED ARTIFACTS FROM THE HERITAGE AUCTIONS ARCHIVES.
2 NFL CHAMPIONSHIPS won by Jim Thorpe as a member of the Canton Bulldogs. His 1933 Sport Kings trading card sold for $119,500 at an August 2016 Heritage auction.
24 UNOPENED PACKS in the 1962 Topps football wax box, which included the rookie debuts of Ernie Davis, Fran Tarkenton and Mike Ditka. It realized $90,000 at a May 2020 auction.
31 CERTIFICATE NUMBER for Aug. 22, 1923, stock sold to raise funds for the Green Bay Packers. This example sold for $44,400 at an August 2019 Heritage auction.
44 ESTIMATED NUMBER of unused Super Bowl I tickets remaining today. This example realized $66,000 at a February 2019 Heritage auction.
46 POINTS SCORED by the Chicago Bears in their victory over the New England in Super Bowl XX. The Super Bowl championship ring presented to William “Refrigerator” Perry sold for $203,150 at a July 2015 auction.
942 YARDS RUSHED by Jim Brown in his rookie year with the Cleveland Browns. His 1957 NFL Rookie of the Year trophy realized $31,070 at an October 2007 auction.
This article appears in the Fall 2020 edition of The Intelligent Collector magazine. Click here to subscribe to the print edition.