Completed Sets: 2018

A few years ago, I started keeping track of the last card I obtained in order to complete a set.  I like the idea of being able to go back and remember the building process for each set by looking at the final pesky card to find its way to my collection.  One unexpected boon from this is that I have kept a comprehensive list of sets that I have polished off each year, and I can make a little blog series to chronicle set completion each year.

In 2018, I was able to finish nine sets.  Some (most) of these sets I had been working on for longer than others.  Remember that completion in a given year does not necessarily mean that I built the entire set that year.  I'm a pretty slow set builder.

2016 Topps All-Star MVP

There was no "last card" for this set, as I bought it complete on ebay.  It was a set that fits my collection absolutely perfectly, as All-Star MVPs are some of my favorite players to collect.

2016 Topps Award Winners

This set is one that I had little interest in.  However, it was available for a good price from the same ebay seller as the one above, so I picked up the entire 12-card set as a combined shipping collateral purchase.

1991 Pro Set Platinum

I bought a box each of 1991 Pro Set Platinum Series 1 and 2.  This is a set that has really grown on me through the years.  The photography is simply stunning.  The biggest drawback, of course, is the lack of names on the front of the card.  There are also no stats on the back.  But a page of this in a binder is a beautiful sight.  Just look at Warren Powers getting a hand up in Rodney Peete's throwing lane.  Or Joe Morris fighting for an extra yard.  Look at the card in the bottom right, as Roger Craig is just now losing control of the football.  I don't understand the two black and white backgrounds in the set, but they are still good-looking cards.

Need more proof?  How about Jerry Rice celebrating a touchdown, Ironhead Heyward getting that big frame in the air to go over the line, or Mark Collins denying the Bears a score with a goal line pick.

In my two boxes, I came very near to completing two whole sets.  The collation wasn't perfect, so I still needed to pick up a few singles to finish the 1-315 set. 

 Two Hall of Famers had rookies in this set, Brett Favre and Aeneas Williams.

Jacob Green, #279, was the last card I needed to complete the set.

2018 Topps Opening Day

My annual tradition is to buy a box of Opening Day and open it on Opening Day.  It's a small set, and Topps does a good job of making sure you get a complete set in one box.  To be honest, I didn't note which card was the last out, so I just put up a picture or Carlos Correa.

1999 Upper Deck HoloGrfx

I already posted about my completion of this set, but just to recap: I found a partial set on Sportlots and thought it would be worth my money to get the partial and seek out the last few singles.  #68 David Boston was the last card I needed.

1999 Upper Deck HoloGrfx NFL 24/7

The base set purchase also included a mostly complete NFL 24/7 insert set.  Peyton Manning was the final piece to the insert set.

2008 Topps Football

This is a set that I have been working on for a while.  It took two hobby boxes and some singles purchases to finish it, but it's done.  It features pretty good rookie class including Matt Ryan, Jordy Nelson, Jamaal Charles, and Joe Flacco.  This Adrian Peterson Pro Bowl card (#298) was the last one for this set.

2016 Panini Accolades

Back in 2016, I bought four or five boxes of Panini football.  I came away with a good portion of the base set, which I am still working on, and a couple of insert sets I wanted to complete.  In 2018, I finished the first of those three sets.  The insert Accolades is a 20-card set featuring current and retired players that commemorates one achievement by each player.  Emmitt Smith, #6, completed this set.

2012 Panini Cooperstown High Praise

This is a candidate for my favorite set ever.  Each card displays a quotation praising the player, thus the title of the set.  Card #12, Al Kaline, was the last card I needed.

2018 Donruss Football

I hadn't planned on completing a 2018 football set.  In fact, I publicly declared that I wouldn't.  A Black Friday sale convinced me otherwise, though.  I found a great price on a factory set of 2018 Donruss.  I still haven't even broken it out yet, so I'll just show the Packers' first round pick, Jaire Alexander.  He played well this year, and I'm looking forward to his future.

I don't know how many I'll complete in 2019.  I hope I get a few done, because I'm getting really close to some that I just want to be done with.