Nearmint's Vintage Football Card Blog

Jim Whalen, a tight end from 1965 to 1971 for the Boston Patriots, Denver Broncos, and Philadelphia Eagles, passed away on December 18. There is an article about Whalen on the Patriots web site. According to the article, Whalen led the Patriots in receptions and receiving yards during his five seasons with the team.

Whalen is shown here on his 1968 Topps and 1969 Topps football cards. His first three cards, from 1965 to 1967, picture him in his Boston College uniform, with his face obscured. You can see all of Whalen’s cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.

Dick Felt, a defensive back from 1960 to 1966 for the AFL’s New York Titans and Boston Patriots, passed away on November 17. The Salt Lake City Tribune has a story about him, along with a few photos. Felt played in the 1963 AFL Championship game, which the Patriots lost to the Chargers. After his playing career, he was an assistant coach at BYU for 26 seasons. He was inducted into the BYU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1977.

Felt appeared on two AFL football cards, the 1963 Fleer and 1964 Topps cards pictured here. There are two variations of the 1963 Fleer card, one with a red stripe on the bottom of the back, and one without the stripe. (See the bottom of my 1963 Fleer uncut sheet page for details.) Felt’s 1964 Topps card is one of the short prints in the set.

Last week, at the National Sports Collectors Conference, I picked up two badly miscut 1967 Topps football cards that will help me determine what an uncut sheet looked like. Here they are: a Johnny Robinson card with a bit of Wahoo McDaniel on the left, and a Jim Hunt card with a bit of Johnny Robinson on the left. You can see the pieces of the sheet I have so far on my virtual 1967 Topps uncut sheet page.

For a full list of the virtual uncut sheets I have assembled, see my previous blog article, U is for Uncut Sheets. If you happen to have pictures of full sheets, partial sheets, or miscut cards that would help the effort, I’d love to see them!

J.D. Garrett, a running back and kick returner for the Boston Patriots from 1964 to 1967, passed away on July 4. There is a story and a recent photo of Garrett on the ktbs.com web site. Garrett’s best year with the Patriots was 1964, when he gained 1137 all-purpose yards. He appeared on one football card, the 1965 Topps card pictured here.

Billy Neighbors, who played guard from 1962 to 1969 for the AFL’s Boston Patriots and Miami Dolphins, passed away on April 30. There is a story and a recent picture of Neighbors on the AL.com web site. Neighbors was voted to the Associated Press and UPI All-AFL teams in 1962, 1963, and 1964. In college, he played for Bear Bryant on Alabama’s 1961 national championship team. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003.

The cards pictured here are Neighbors’s first two cards. The first, a 1961 Nu-Card, shows him still with Alabama, and the second, a 1963 Fleer, is considered his rookie card. (I don’t know why 1961 Nu-Cards are not considered rookie cards.) He appeared on several other cards and stamps, as well.

Houston Antwine, a defensive lineman from 1961 to 1972 for the Boston/New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles, passed away last night, according to the Boston Globe web site. His wife passed away today. Antwine was an American Football League All-Star six straight seasons, from 1963 to 1968.

Antwine appeared on numerous football cards and stamps during his career. The cards pictured here are his rookie card, a 1964 Topps, and his last card, a 1970 Topps. You can see all of Antwine’s cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.

Tom Addison, who starred at linebacker for the Boston Patriots for their first eight seasons, passed away on June 14. Addison played in the AFL All-Star game each year from 1961 to 1964. He also played in the 1963 AFL Championship game, which the Patriots lost to the Chargers. There is a nice tribute to Addison and a summary of his career on the Patriots web site.

Addison appeared on a Fleer or Topps football card each year from 1962 to 1967. His rookie card, a 1962 Fleer, is pictured here. Oddly, he also appeared on a 1961 Fleer Wallet Picture, but he did not have a card in the regular 1961 Fleer set.

• See all of Tom Addison’s cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.
• See Addison’s career stats at pro-football-reference.com.

I read today on boston.com that Jon Morris will be inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame this year. Morris was a center in the AFL and NFL for fifteen seasons: eleven with the Patriots, then three with the Lions and one with the Bears. He was an Pro Bowler in each of his first seven seasons, according to his page at pro-football-reference.com.

The card pictured here is Morris’s rookie card, a 1965 Topps. Topps apparently liked the image, because it also appears on his 1966 Topps and 1967 Topps cards.

You can see all of Jon Morris’s cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery. You can also search the Gallery for cards of other members of the Patriots Hall of Fame.

For Valentine’s Day, I thought I’d give you a bunch of Flowers. As always, you can click on any image to get more details.

First is Keith Flowers, on a 1952 Bowman Small card. Flowers had a short NFL career, playing nine games in 1952 for the Dallas Texans and Detroit Lions. Bowman issued two sets of football cards in 1952, identical except for their size, so Flowers appeared on a 1952 Bowman Large card, as well. Not bad for a few games.

Next is Stan Flowers, who appeared on a 1960 Fleer card with the Patriots but never saw playing time. (I’m inferring this because he does not have a page at pro-football-reference.com.) Fleer apparently chose the players for their 1960 set well before the season started, because I’d guess that a third of the players in the set never actually played in the AFL.

Charlie Flowers is also in the 1960 Fleer set, and he did see playing time: two seasons at fullback with the Chargers, and one with the New York Titans. He appeared on several cards with the Chargers, one being the tough 1961 Golden Tulip Chargers card shown here.

Unlike the guys above, Richmond Flowers actually played awhile before he appeared on a card. He was a defensive back and kick returner for the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants from 1969 to 1973, and he made his debut on a 1973 Topps card. In 1973, Topps increased the size of their football card set from 351 to 528, so they were able to include many players who had not appeared on cards earlier.

Finally, we have Tom Flores, a longtime quarterback and coach for the Oakland Raiders. (He also played a couple of years for the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs.) This is one of his rookie cards, a 1961 Topps; the other is a 1961 Fleer. Flores appeared on a bunch of other colorful 1960s cards, as well.

That’s it! If you haven’t gotten your sweetie something yet, maybe you can dig through your collection and find a couple of these guys. But first I’d see if Hallmark is still open.

Yesterday I identified the members of the New England Patriots Hall of Fame in the Vintage Football Card Gallery. Pictured here is the first inductee, John Hannah, on his rookie card, a 1974 Topps. In 1981, Paul Zimmerman, in Sports Illustrated, called Hannah “the greatest offensive lineman in history.”

The team’s web site has a list of the all of the Patriots Hall of Famers, along with photos and summaries of their careers.

If you’re not a Patriots fan, you can probably find your team’s Hall of Famers via the Gallery’s Advanced Search page. Not all teams have a hall of fame, but I am almost finished with the teams that do.