This Patrick Mahomes Rookie Card May Be His Ugliest

Feb 9, 2025; New Orleans, LA, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) reacts against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX at Ceasars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images Feb 9, 2025; New Orleans, LA, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) reacts against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX at Ceasars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Just recently I was perusing through Ebay, looking for an affordable Patrick Mahomes rookie card. There is of course the Prizm rookie, the Optic rookie, and the Donruss Rated rookie, but I needed something a little cheaper. I started looking for some of his college uniform cards, when I came across this work of art:

Patrick Mahomes Elite RC / Picture credited to Cardladder.com

We all know the early debut cards of these players will showcase their college teams, and it’s not as pretty as their Pro uniforms, but even Leaf and Sage have better-looking options.

This card that Panini put out of Mahomes, is an atrocity. The photo of Mahomes looks like the Linebacker Bateman from The Replacements, trying to kick the pigskin, while dodging anything that resembles the game of football. As a collector, if you don’t know what you are looking for, you can easily flip right past this piece of cardboard. Between the facial expression, to the flailing arms, to the RoboCop leg, this card is a complete disaster.

This has be the worst looking RC of a future hall of famer. Panini can’t blame it on the player being unknown, and didn’t have the knowledge of what this players potential was. Mahomes was the 10th pick overall in the 2017 draft. The 3x Super Bowl champion, and 2x MVP deserves better.

The one good thing about this college card, is that it’s affordable. This Mahomes card is so bad, it may actually be more collectible to some. You will not need to spend over $4,000 to obtain this card, like you would with the 2017 Prizm Silver PSA 10. Per Cardladder, a PSA 10 of this card typically is sold for well under $200, giving collectors more room in their budget to collect what they want.

While this Panini Elite Draft Pick may not be the prettiest of the bunch, it does have the branding of Panini and is a great way to own a PSA 10 RC of one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.

Like the expression goes ” What is one man’s trash, is another man’s treasure”.