The vest Jayden Daniels rookie cards to collect at all price points

Most football card collectors crowned No.

1 draft pick Caleb Williams as the top rookie card chase at the start of the 2024 NFL season, but the emergence of No.

2 pick Jayden Daniels has cemented the Washington Commanders quarterback as the new favorite.

The 2023 Heisman Trophy winner quickly showed his ability to pass and rush at the highest level and led the Commanders to their first playoff win in nearly 20 years.

By the end of the season, he was among the five most searched athletes across all sports on eBay.

Advertisement So now that most of his rookie cards from popular sets are released, what are the best options to start a Daniels collection? Heres what we like.

Top pick (full recommendations below) 2024 Panini Prizm #17 Rookie Variation Daniels 2024 Prizm Rookie Variation card is my recommendation with the best value based on its popularity, relative scarcity, and price in gem mint grades.

The high status of Prizm rookie cards makes it especially appealing to collectors and is a worthy alternative to his more valuable Prizm #347 base Silver Parallel rookie because of its comparatively limited supply.

const eBayApiUrl="https://api.theathletic.com"; Things to know before buying The value of sports cards can fluctuate for various reasons such as condition, print runs, or graded population.

Other factors that can cause prices to go up or down include player performance, market trends, and health of the wider economy.

The secondary sales market for individual cards of a given sport generally hits its lowest point during the offseason (in other words, you can usually find better prices in the offseason than during the season).

My recommendations are not an attempt to promote specific investment behavior or trading advice, but to guide and inform readers about popular and unique cards that are celebrated by the sports card community.

Ultimately, the best cards to collect are always the ones you will personally enjoy most, regardless of whether they go up or down in value.

The recommendations below should serve as a starting point for cards to consider, but a big part of the fun in collecting is the hunt for the cards you like.

Raw cards vs.

Graded cards Cards can come out of the pack (their raw state) with a wide variety of imperfections that can impact their value.

Card grading is a process in which an expert of the field determines the condition of a card based on a number of factors (including corner sharpness, image centering, print imperfections, and more) and assigns a numerical grade, usually on a scale of 1-10 (with the latter being close to perfect) and sealed in a protective case.

There are a number of grading companies, each with their own unique grading scales, but PSA (Professional Sports Authenticator) is by far the largest and most prominent in the industry.

Cards graded a PSA 10 can carry a significant value multiplier compared to raw cards or those graded by other companies.

Advertisement Its fine (and often cheaper) to buy cards raw, but if you want to ensure authenticity and/or a minimum condition level, and youre not experienced at determining card condition for yourself, you may want to buy a graded card instead particularly if youre buying online and only able to see the card in photographs.

Best low-end (~$1-$99) Jayden Daniels cards This is a category for collectors who are on a tighter budget or arent as concerned about the long-term monetary value of the cards they buy.

2024 Panini Mosaic #302 rookie card Mosaic is viewed as one of Paninis mid-tier sets, known for its ultramodern design, rainbow parallels, and rare inserts.

Id consider Mosaic cards to be a step down from top chromium (a type of card that is shinier than a standard paper stock card) sets such as Prizm, Select, and Optic.

But upon its annual release, it typically generates a lot of buzz within the hobby since its the first NFL-licensed chromium release with rookie cards of the latest draft class.

Mosaic products are easily accessible and offered in a wide range of retail and hobby formats.

Retail formats (mega boxes, blaster boxes, hanger packs, hanger boxes) can be purchased at stores like Walmart and Target.

In contrast, Hobby boxes are available online and in hobby shops.

If youre looking to add an affordable chrome base rookie card to your collection, Daniels Mosaic #302 is a great second choice to his more expensive Prizm rookie cards.

Raw versions are currently selling on eBay for less than $5 and a gem-mint PSA 10 can be found for less than $50.

If you like the set but would rather buy a more limited Daniels Mosaic rookie card, Id consider looking at the list of colorful parallels (see below) to determine which you may prefer to own.

More expensive parallels of this card: Mosaic, Blue Reactive Mosaic, Camo Pink Mosaic, Camo Red Mosaic, Genesis Mosaic, Geen Mosaic, Honeycomb, No Huddle Silver Mosaic, Peacock Choice Mosaic, Red Mosaic, Red Sparkle, Silver, White Sparkle, Yellow Reactive Mosaic, Orange Mosaic (/199), Blue Mosaic (/99), Blue Sparkle (/96), Fusion Red and Yellow Choice Mosaic (/80), No Huddle Blue Mosaic (/75), No Huddle Purple Mosaic (/50), Purple Mosaic (/49), Orange Fluorescent Mosaic (/25), White Mosaic (/25), Gold Sparkle (/24), No Huddle Pink Mosaic (/20), Gold Wave Mosaic (/17), Blue Fluorescent Mosaic (/15), Tessellation Mosaic (/15), Geen Swirl Mosaic (/13), Pink Swirl Mosaic (/13), Gold Mosaic (/10), Green Fluorescent Mosaic (/10), No Huddle Gold Mosaic (/10), Pink Fluorescent Mosaic (/10), Red Wave Mosaic (/9), Black Gold Choice Mosaic (/8), Green Sparkle (/8), Black Mosaic (1/1), Nebula Choice Mosaic (1/1), No Huddle Black Mosaic (1/1) 2024 Panini Donruss #389 rookie card Donruss is an ideal entry-level set thats one of Paninis flagship releases each NFL season.

It may not have the flash or pizazz of Prizm or Select chromium cards, but it might be the most popular football card set produced on paper card stock right now.

Daniels has nearly 20 different cards included in the 2024 Donruss checklist, but his #389 base card is one of only a few Daniels cards to include the classic Rated Rookie logo.

As a result, the Donruss base rookie card is one of his most graded cards by PSA, as of this writing.

The introduction of the Rated Rookie card by Donruss in 1984 added to the boosted popularity of rookie card collecting during the junk wax era and has become a staple in the hobby.

Advertisement Donruss well-established Rated Rookie cards are a great budget-friendly selection for collectors who prefer traditional paper stock over chrome cards.

PSA 10 sales on eBay are currently around $50 and Raw copies will cost you around $5.

More expensive parallels of this card: Jersey Number, Season Stat Line, Aqueous Test, Blue Press Proof, Canvas, Green Press Proof, No Name, Purple Press Proof, Red Press Proof, Yellow Press Proof, Silver Press Proof (/100), Silver Press Proof Die-Cut (/75), Gold Press Proof (/50), Gold Press Proof Die-Cut (/25), Black Press Proof (/10), Black Press Proof Die-Cut (1/1) Best value (~$100-$599) Jayden Daniels cards This is a category for collectors looking to pay a bit more for cards that have some degree of scarcity and have a better chance at retaining or increasing in value long-term.

2024 Panini Prizm #17 Rookie Variation Out of the dozens of rookie cards produced of the 2024 Offensive Rookie of the Year, his Prizm cards are some of the most popular.

But for this recommendation, I wanted to shift from the sets highly collected base silver parallel rookie card and suggest Daniels #17 Rookie Variation card from the same set.

The meteoric rise in demand and prices of Prizm rookie cards at the start of the pandemic in 2020 caused Panini to introduce variation rookie cards to the checklist.

This element gives collectors a chance to own a more limited Prizm rookie card that uses a different player photo than the typical action images used on base cards.

In this instance, Daniels Prizm Rookie Variation presents a portrait-style photo of him holding out a football with the NFL logo facing the camera.

Daniels Prizm Rookie Variation card is currently around $70 cheaper than his #347 Base Silver parallel.

According to PSAs population report, Daniels #17 Rookie Variation has been graded 463 times, while his base silver parallel has more than 1,500 PSA-graded copies.

Both of those figures will continue to grow as we get further from when the set was first released in mid-December 2024, but the difference between the two is notable.

More expensive parallels of this card: Green Wave Prizms, No Huddle Prizms, Pink Wave Prizms, Mojo Prizms (/25), Gold Prizms (/10), Black Finite Prizms (1/1) 2024 Topps Chrome #RA-JDA Rookie Autograph After over a decade, the iconic Topps Chrome Football set made its return in 2024 reviving the product with Daniels and Williams rookie autograph cards as the top chases.

Unfortunately, collectors wont find a Topps Chrome Daniels rookie or autograph card with a Commanders logo on it, since Panini retains the NFL license until the spring of 2026.

Topps did its best in choosing images that hide the absence of NFL team logos on jerseys and helmets in card images, but it still impacts the overall demand compared to products with NFL-licensed rookie autograph cards.

Advertisement You may be asking why Daniels doesnt have NFL-licensed autographed trading cards.

Well, the current state of NFL cards and exclusive autograph relationships between players and card companies has gotten awkward.

While Panini currently has the exclusive NFL trading card license, meaning it is the only card manufacturer that can print official NFL team names and logos on their trading cards, Fanatics (which owns Topps) has exclusive trading card autograph and memorabilia deals with young NFL stars like Daniels, Williams, and CJ Stroud.

The current nonexistence of NFL-licensed autograph cards of top rookies who have exclusive deals with Fanatics leaves collectors who want to own a Daniels rookie auto with limited choices.

That said, The 2024 Pro Bowlers Topps Chrome base rookie auto is surely his most popular and sells on eBay for around $500.

More expensive parallels of this card: Green Wave Prizms, Aqua Refractor (/199), Aqua Sonar Refractor (/199), Blue Refractor (/150), Green Refractor (/99), Gold Refractor (/50), Gold Wave Refractor (/50), Orange Refractor (/25), Orange Wave Refractor (/25), Red Refractor (/5), SuperFractor (1/1) Best high-end (~$600+) Jayden Daniels cards This is a category for collectors looking to acquire the most desired Daniels cards on the market.

2024 Panini Prizm #M-JD Manga SSP Panini has continued to create highly sought after rare insert cards using fresh themes and artistic aesthetics and Manga cards are a testament to that.

The ultra-rare insert made its debut in Prizm football sets in 2021 and its design draws from Japanese-inspired comic art.

The white-bordered card portrays a cartoonish Daniels standing behind a Commanders podium at a press conference.

Manga inserts are not available in retail configurations and are only offered in premium hobby formats, making them less accessible to the average collector.

Advertisement Manga inserts are extremely hard to find in packs and have a small number of PSA graded copies.

As of this writing, less than 30 examples of Daniels Prizm Manga insert have been graded PSA, with recent PSA 10 sales reaching $10,000.

Its without a doubt in the top three for most valuable Daniels rookie insert cards.

2024 Panini Donruss #16 Downtown Originally created as a basketball card themed to pay homage to talented long-range shooters, the now famous Downtown insert was introduced as part of the 2016 Donruss Studio release a set thats no longer produced.

A few years following its successful debut and popularity among basketball collectors, Downtown inserts began showing up in other NBA sets, and soon after NFL and MLB products like Donruss, Donruss Optic, and Diamond Kings.

One of my favorite aspects of Downtown cards compared to other popular rare inserts is that each cards theme is unique to a specific player and team they play for.

The cards feature famous landmarks, historical imagery, and cultural elements related to the specific city or region of the players team.

In the case of the Commanders and Daniels Downtown insert, the background depicts the U.S.

Capitol building and Washington Monument with the quarterback.

PSAs population report shows there are currently less than 1,200 Daniels Downtown cards graded by the company and 240 have received a PSA 10 grade.

Raw examples are selling on eBay between $1,000-$1,500 and PSA 10s are in the $3,000 range.

Downtown cards have become some of the most celebrated rare inserts of the modern era thanks in part to their significant demand, clever designs, and high-end prices.

More expensive parallels of this card: Gold (/10), Black (1/1) Other cool Jayden Daniels Cards 2024 Topps Allen & Ginter Mini Autograph #MA-JD Allen & Ginter is a set that harkens back to the early days of trading cards and features baseball players, notable athletes from other sports, and pop culture celebrities.

Since 2006, Topps has revived the historic set based on the original designs from the 19th century.

Its one of the most fascinating trading card checklists filled with eccentric relics, autographs, and insert cards of nontraditional subjects like plants and food items.

Advertisement The tobacco era style of Daniels Allen & Ginter Mini Autograph card has a museum-like presentation with his signature directly on the card.

This may seem a bit trivial, but on-card autographs are widely coveted because many of the signatures in modern collecting come in the form of the player signing a sticker, which is then affixed to the card.

Although most collectors generally perceive Allen & Ginter as an oddball baseball card set, the current demand for Daniels autograph cards has it selling in the $500 ballpark.

Plus, the fact that he doesnt yet sign NFL-licensed trading cards makes this an even more intriguing autograph card from his rookie year to own.

2024 Panini Donruss #29 Bomb Squad! In most of my recommendation pieces, I tend to highlight rare or valuable insert cards, but I still think its important to identify awesome-looking inserts that are more common and easily obtainable.

Bomb Squad! insert cards featured in 2024 Donruss set show off a dynamic design with a backdrop that mimics cartoon explosion.

The inserts checklist features a mix of quarterbacks and pass catchers, but I think the Bomb Squad! motif is a perfect fit for a player whos already proven to be one of the NFLs most accurate deep ball throwers.

Another factor contributing to the coolness of Daniels Bomb Squad! insert is that it happens to match the colors of the Commanders uniform.

In short, Its a fun, color match rookie insert that brings joy to collectors for a low price.

Getting the best price Prices for a certain trading card can vary wildly and fluctuate quickly, making it important to check recent sales of a given card to make sure youre buying at a fair value.

You can check recent sales of an item on eBay by selecting the sold items filter on search results.

You can also run a search on 130point.com , which is a free site that provides sales data from a number of top online marketplaces.

There are also several apps that provide more in-depth sales data, often charging subscription fees for full access.

To account for outliers and scams, its important to consider multiple previous sales, not just the single most recent.

Its also important to note the recency of those sales and any real-world factors that could affect changes in value.

Why you should trust us As a second-generation collector, Tyler Holzhammer started collecting cards and attending the National Sports Collectors Convention at 10 years old.

Hes evolved his passion as a collector into a career, previously providing sports card content and market analysis for companies like Sports Card Investor and Goldin Auctions.

Tylers sports card collection is centered around players from his favorite teams, the Los Angeles Rams and the St.

Louis Cardinals.

The Athletic maintains full editorial independence in all our coverage.

When you click or make purchases through our links, we may earn a commission.

(Top photo: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images; card images: eBay).

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