Washington QB is Thriving on and off the Field
With the CSA Chantilly Show in their backyard last weekend, it was an opportune time for Blowout Cards to fill up on inventory.
Director of retail operations Adam Musilli attended the show with $10,000 designated specifically to buy Jayden Daniels cards. Blowout Cards is located in northern Virginia, a mere 10 miles outside of Washington, D.C., where the Washington rookie quarterback has been the talk of the town and the entire league.
But even at one of the biggest card shows in the country, Musilli didn’t have any luck picking up Daniels cards.
“Nothing at all. I tried,” Musilli said. “I even went to the trade event after the show, and nothing.”
Cards for the No. 2 overall pick in last April’s draft are red hot. Everyone wants them. Anyone who owns Daniels cards doesn’t seem to want to part with them. They’ve become cardboard gold.
“If anyone hits any numbered Daniels cards around here, they don’t want to sell them,” Musilli said. “We’ll pay almost darn near as much as they want. But you can’t pry those things out of their hands right now.”
The former LSU star who won the 2023 Heisman Trophy is electrifying the old and new Washington fanbase. He has led his team to the top of its division standings at 5-2. In his first seven professional games, Daniels has passed for 1,410 yards on 75.6% accuracy (127-for-168) with six touchdowns and just two interceptions. The dual-threat quarterback has also rushed for 372 yards and four scores — leading all rookies in both categories.
Daniels has a shot at upping his stock even more this weekend when Washington hosts Chicago and the top overall pick in the last draft, quarterback Caleb Williams. The former USC star has thrown for nine touchdowns as Chicago is off to a 4-2 start.
Shops Searching for Product
Collectors can find Daniels cards in 2024 TOPPS NOW®. He has base and autograph cards from draft night that include him solo but also with Williams and No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye, who went to New England. Daniels also has a 2024 TOPPS NOW® base card and variations following his impressive pro debut.
Daniels’ latest card comes from the 2024 Topps Baseball Update Series release—yes, a baseball product. The SSP (super short print) card includes autographs and parallels from when Daniels threw out the first pitch at a Nationals game in June.
“We have football fans who don’t traditionally buy baseball cards buying baseball cards to get Jayden,” Musilli said.
Collector’s World co-owners Steve Weber and Damon Hudson are also fielding plenty of demand for Daniels cards. The Annandale, Virginia shop, located about 13 miles from the heart of Washington, D.C., can’t keep product in stock. The guys currently don’t have any Daniels cards in their showcases.
“It’s nuts. I wish I had Jayden Daniels stuff because if I have it, it’s gone,” Weber said. “Everyone’s asking about it, and there’s actually not a lot out there to be had for a shop.”
If someone stops by the shop with Daniels cards, the Collector’s World owners snatch it up.
“We don’t let it leave the store, but then it’s gone right away,” Hudson said.
“Jayden Daniels and Caitlin Clark are two athletes that we cannot keep their cards in stock.”
A couple of hours outside the nation’s capital city, Graybo’s Sports Cards in Richmond, Virginia, are also feeling the positive effects of Daniels’ hot start.
“In the hobby, it feels like C.J. Stroud hype. But here it’s, obviously, more local,” said Duke Dodson, one of Graybo’s owners. “Most of Daniels’ big cards aren’t out yet. The cards that do exist sell very fast in the shop.”
TOPPS NOW® Craziness
Dodson noted that his hobby shop had a Daniels 2024 TOPPS NOW® autograph card numbered to 199 that sold for $1,325 on September 24. One month later, that same card is going for two to three times that price.
“We don’t see a lot of people selling him,” Dodson said. “There’s a lot more buyers than sellers.”
Blowout Cards has gotten its hands on six TOPPS NOW® autos of Daniels, the last one being on October 17. Musilli posted the card on the company’s Instagram account and quickly received multiple messages from customers to put the card on hold for them.
“We don’t do reverses,” Musilli said. “So it’s whoever gets here first. We’re like, ‘Drive safe, everyone.’ Not to cause a panic. But it was like 22 minutes after we made the post, it was gone.
“For a four-figure card, that’s usually not the case. Your buyers are limited. But being here in D.C. and just the hype around that guy, we probably could have charged a little more. We sold it to a really good customer.”
