Born in 1966, Troy Aikman’s early and late careers are nothing if not a renowned success story. Perhaps best known for three Super Bowl Championships with the Dallas Cowboys in the early to mid-1990s, Troy Aikman was also a National Champion with the Oklahoma Sooners and a Cotton Bowl MVP.
There are several Troy Aikman cards that are worth a good bit of money. however, the most valuable Troy Aikman cards are all autographed. For instance, the 1989 Score #270 RC Dallas Cowboys HoF Card/Autographed is $380, while the same card, without the autograph, is $54.95.
Today, Troy Aikman is a color commentator for ESPN’s Monday Night Football Program, following a stint at Fox. This was not long after he retired from the NFL in 2000.
He is also a co-owner of a team in NASCAR and a co-owner of the San Diego Padres.
Is a Troy Aikman rookie card valuable?
The value of any card, whether it’s baseball, football, or Pokemon, is based on both its rarity and the subject of the card. There is little doubting Troy Aikman’s accomplishments over the course of two decades at the highest level possible.
There are a number of rookie cards that carry Troy Aikman’s name and some would consider being quite valuable, especially if they are Dallas Cowboy fans. Within that circle, Aikman will always exist in a realm of legendary status.
Most collected Troy Aikman RC’s
One of the top Troy Aikman cards, in terms of value for money, is the 1989 Topps Traded Troy Aikman RC #70T.
It typically sells for anywhere between $20 and $30, depending on the mood of the market for the day. You can find several of these cards on eBay, where you will find multiple copies. Expect to pay around $100 for a PSA 9s and $120+ for PSA 10s.
There is also the above-mentioned 1989 Score Troy Aikman RC #270, which is a rookie card and typically sells for between $50 and $60. If it is an autographed copy of the card, it retails for 7 times that amount.
Outside of that, there are other rookie cards of Troy Aikman available on the market but they usually don’t cost a pile of money. Most of the Troy Aikman cards out there, especially the ones that have a lot of copies in circulation, will cost between $2 and $15.
But how is a value determined? There is no doubting that a $2 Troy Aikman rookie card is going to be a lot more valuable in the hands of a Dallas Cowboy fan than it would in the hands of a New York Giants fan or a Green Bay Packers fan.
In those terms, Troy Aikman cards from a fans perspective can have as much, if not sentimental value, rather than monetary value.
What is a Troy Aikman football card worth?
It depends on the Troy Aikman card, especially considering the fact that there are likely thousands of Troy Aikman cards in circulation out there, either owned or free-floating throughout the industry somewhere.
A 2002 Topps Troy Aikman Ring of Honor Autographed card will run you a cool $500.
That same card, with the addition of a “refractor” effect, which is called “foil” in other card collections, goes for $4,000. Which is 8 times the value of the autograph-only version.
Then there are cards that are combination autographed cards, such as the 2016 Troy Aikman, Emmit Smith, Michael Irvin Impeccable Trios autographed Panini #3 which sells for around $2,000.
If you were to just go off of the average cost of a typical Troy Aikman card, usually from the years 2000 to 2005, the value hovers between $2 and $20. There is the occasional outlier but we’re talking about thousands of cards, including all of the various, available brands.
If your drop down into an earlier time period, such as the 90s, for instance, the cards start to go up in value across the board. The reasons are obvious since you are looking at older cards and older cards are typically more valuable.
Of course, the difference here is that the jump in value is often pretty significant. The 1996 Troy Aikman – Kerry Collins Upper Deck Hot Properties Gold #HT9 sells for around $80.00 for a high graded card.
It is a nice double sided piece that is enjoyed by collectors and can be picked up for pennies for a lower quality ungraded card.
What year was the Troy Aikman rookie card?
Troy Aikman’s rookie cards are from the year 1989. He was selected as the first overall draft pick in the 1989 NFL Draft during a time of upheaval. That year, in February, the owner of the NFL Cowboys, Jerry Jones, fired Coach Tom Landry and filled the position by hiring Jimmy Johnson, another name that would go down in the history books.
Jimmy Johnson also drafted another quarterback by the name of Steve Walsh, probably because the two were previously together when Jimmy Johnson was the head coach of the Miami Hurricanes at the NCAA level.
Steve Walsh turned out to be very little threat in the wake of Troy Aikman and Aikman trounced him in practice. Ultimately winning the starting quarterback job and forcing Steve Walsh to be traded in fewer than two years. Apparently, he wasn’t even suitable as a backup.
Aikman didn’t blow anybody’s socks off in his season debut, getting hammered by the New Orleans Saints 28-0. The fact that the Saints were essentially a welcome mat for the rest of the NFL back in 1989 just made the pummeling that much worse. Of course, Troy Aikman didn’t play defense but the Quarterback always seems to catch the most flack.
Even after a loss to the Atlanta Falcons where Aikman threw two interceptions, he went on to set a rookie quarterback record by passing for 379 yards against the Arizona Cardinals on his way to an 0 and 11 season. Not the most phenomenal start to a career but probably has an effect on the overall value of his rookie cards.
All in all, it’s safe to say that Troy Aikman’s rookie season didn’t set the world on fire and is one that he would probably rather forget.
What are the Most Valuable Troy Aikman Cards Today?
The most valuable Troy Aikman cards on the market today are the cards that he has autographed. There is a huge disparity in the price of Troy Aikman cards that are signed versus ones that are not. Our first comparison is a testament to that much, with the autograph alone increasing the value 7 to 8 times the market price.
- PSA/DNA 9 Autographed 1989 Score #270 Signed RC Dallas Cowboys Hall of Fame – $395.00
- 1989 Topps Traded Troy Aikman Rookie Card RC #70T – $75.99
- 1990 Topps Tiffany “Super Rookie” Troy Aikman CSG Gem Mint Cowboys Pop 2 – $249.99
- A 2002 Topps Troy Aikman Ring of Honor Autographed card – $500.00 and the Refractor version is much higher at $4,000.00
- 2015 Troy Aikman 9/15 Flawless Victory Autographed Ruby Encased – $499.99
All Things Considered
Troy Aikman will forever hold legendary status in the state of Texas, especially when it comes to hardcore Dallas Cowboys fans.
While many of his non-autographed cards are not worth much in terms of monetary value, they hold value and esteem in those who own them and bring back fond memories to anyone who was also lucky enough to watch him play.
Apart from being such an interesting hobby that can take you in so many directions. It keeps you in touch with your younger self. I still feel the same level of excitement when adding a new card to the collection.
I'm still learning, and I always will be. I hope you find my posts helpful.
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