2023 Absolute Football: A Memorabilia-Driven Product With Nice Stroud Potential

Absolute Football is back, releasing on January 17, 2024 at $500/box. As always, this early-season release will make great use of memorabilia and be a top card to chase – one of the reasons we identified it as a top CJ Stroud rookie to pursue. 

This release is packed with new rookies, inserts, parallels, and autographs, making it an absolute must-have for collectors and investors alike.

2023 Panini Absolute Football introduction

Absolute Football 2023 promises an exciting return with a variety of features that have made it a favorite among fans. The upcoming season will continue to showcase its trademark elements, such as the highly sought-after Rookie Premiere Materials Autographs, Tools of the Trade, Jumbo Memorabilia cards, and the beloved Kaboom!, Explosive, and Glass case-hit chases.

The perennially popular set is the Rookie Premiere Materials Autographs. Absolute Football has built a strong reputation for delivering a stunning assortment of memorabilia cards, and the 2023 release brings back hits like Tools of the Trade, Ground Hoggs, and the coveted Pro Bowl Souvenirs.

With a 242-card set, Absolute Football 2023 offers a diverse collection featuring 100 current stars, 100 rookies, and the exclusive 42-card Rookie Premiere Materials chase. 

And, most noteworthy, remember that 2023 Absolute will not have autographs of Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud or Will Levis. They’re working exclusively with Fanatics, so three of the best autographs you could pull from the draft class will not be in the box.

What you can expect from Panini Absolute Football 2023

Absolute’s hobby product is all about having a big rip session with bright cards, cool parallels and some decent-ish autograph potential. 

Sadly, it’s a quick rip. Each hobby box only comes with 3 packs of 5 cards, so you’re only getting 15 cards per box. Each Absolute Football 2023 box includes 1 Rookie Premiere Materials Autograph, 2 additional autographs, 2 memorabilia cards, 1 insert, 2 parallels, 1 rookie card, and 6 base cards.

Absolute also has retail products, too. Here’s a quick breakdown:

Hobby:

• $500
• 3 packs of 15 cards
• 5 hits

Blaster:

• $30
• 6 packs of 11 cards
• 3 green parallels
• No guaranteed hit

Blaster:

• $50
• 7 packs of 6 cards
• 1 guaranteed rookie or auto

With a very deep checklist of 100 rookies, Absolute usually has every single rookie you could ever hope to pull. Occasionally, when an unexpected star breaks out, this can create value in its own way.

While we don’t have a full parallel list yet, it will probably look like last year, which is below:

PARALLEL CARDS:

• Blue
• Green
• Orange
• Purple
• Red
• RWB Kaleidoscope
• Yellow
• Red Squares #/499
• Orange Mosaic #/199
• Blue Diamonds #/99
• Green Waves #/50
• Gold Stars #/25
• Purple Rain #/10
• Black Galaxy 1/1
• Printing Plates 1/1

Value of 2023 Absolute

Let’s look at investing in Absolute as a potential investment, both sealed and singles. 

Investing in 2023 Absolute Football

Let’s assume the pre-order price doesn’t budge and we have a release price of $500 for this sealed product as we try to value it as a potential investment. 

With that in mind, here’s the value of sealed Absolute boxes for the last few years (as of 1/9/24):

The 2020 box sold for nearly 2x the upfront investment for a 2023 box, but that box is highlighted by Burrow, Herbert, Tua, Justin Jefferson, and many more. And, again, the 2023 box doesn’t have CJ Stroud or Bryce Young autos – and this is a product that’s heavily driven by autographs. 

So, at $500, the ceiling is pretty low on this box as an investment. No other class in the last for years is selling for enough to even offset eBay fees, so I’d stay away from Absolute as a long-term investment at the release day price..

Investing in Absolute Football singles

This is a section I always include, but with Absolute, I’ll keep it short: there are not many singles I’d invest in long-term. 

If there’s an exception, this product will have some nice-looking Stroud memorabilia pieces that could be nice long-term holds. 

No matter how great the player is, the ceiling is only going to be so high with Absolute. Save your player investments for a brand that has more potential, like Prizm, Optic, or a high-end like National Treasures. 

Bottom line: Our advice on whether to hold, rip or pass

While you shouldn’t buy boxes of Absolute to stash, there are still some nice cards if you decide to rip. But a 15-card box for $500 carries extreme risk, so invest only if you have the disposable income to potentially lose. 

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