A Preview Of 2024 Panini Donruss Football

Football doesn’t have a flagship release, but if it did, Donruss would probably be it, while Prizm would be Chrome.

This release is generally considered lesser than Prizm, and there are good reasons for that. However, Donruss has some significant advantages. It tends to be cheaper because it is paper and has a lower high-end release.

I think it also features the best roster of inserts of any product in the hobby. But the Panini releases this year have often suffered from lacking autos from the big-name rookies. Fanatics has managed to get many of these athletes on exclusive contracts.

So, how does this release hold up? Read our 2024 Panini Donruss Football review to find out.

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History of Panini Donruss Football

Donruss was an independent card company from 1954 onward. It peaked in the 1980s with the introduction of its trademark “Rated Rookies” cards.

However, despite gaining some success, the world of baseball cards was too competitive for Donruss, and the company went out of business in 1998, but the brand continued on throughout the years under various owners.

Donruss Football was first produced in 1996. It had a full-bleed Stadium Club type of design. It was not a particularly successful release because nothing was unique about it.

The release did not include low-numbered parallels. However, it did have one selling point: The 1996 Donruss Football release contained the Press Proof parallel set.

The first 2,000 copies printed of each card became the Press Proof parallel. That technically makes it a low-print card and, therefore, more valuable. But there were a lot of them.

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The Panini years of Donruss Football

Panini purchased the company in 2009 and has since used the Donruss name to designate a particular brand of low-end cards. At first, it suffered an identity crisis, with the first release being Donruss Certified Football and then Elite Football. It became one of their most popular releases, overshadowing the original Donruss brand.

It settled into its current and more recognizable identity with the release of Donruss Football in 2015. It now incorporates the Rated Rookies and many parallels and numbered cards. The base set kept growing. While Elite often had 200 cards in the base set, the 2015 Donruss set had 300, and the 2016 set had at least 400.

Over the last few years, Downtown has been included. That, among other things, has made Donruss Football stand out. This is especially true since other releases with big inserts cost much more.

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2024 Panini Donruss Football release date

The product’s release date is February 5, 2025. You never like to see the release date be the year after what appears in the name, but this is not as extreme as most cases.

Technically, it falls within the correct season since it comes four days before the Super Bowl. Nonetheless, we would like to see Panini do better and get a vital flagship-style release like this out early in the season.

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2024 Panini Donruss Football release formats

Donruss is a hobby and retail box, and this year will be no different. We aren’t sure if this is the complete list of formats yet. Be on the lookout for more.

Hobby Box

• 10 cards per pack
• 18 packs per box
• Look for 1 autograph, 1 memorabilia card,  18 Rated Rookies, 12 parallels, and 42 inserts per box on average
• 18 per case
• A box presells for $410
• A case presells for $7,499.95

Blaster Box

• 90 cards per box
• 15 cards per pack 
• Six packs per box
• Presells for $39.48

Mega Box

• 60 cards per box
• 6 cards per pack
• 10 packs per box
• Presells for $95

2024 Panini Donruss Football pros

Donruss Football’s most significant advantage has always been the excellent variety of inserts; sure, there are no Kaboom! Inserts in this release are a shame. However, we do find Downtown inserts and several others that look fantastic.

Furthermore, the design for many of the inserts is fresh and clean. I liked the Marvels one in particular. The Retro Rate Rookie design is also lovely.

The price remains relatively strong—not much for the hobby boxes, mostly over $400. However, you can get blasters for $25, which is nothing to sneeze at anymore.

Panini has also made the base list only active players after years of stuffing them full of veterans and Hall of Famers.

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2024 Panini Donruss Football cons

Collectors were expecting this release in November, so many were disappointed when time passed with no checklist. This is not supposed to be a late-season release, and it certainly will not come right before the Super Bowl.

The lack of many autos, especially the key rookies, is a constant problem for the Panini releases. The list is significant. It includes Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye, Rome Odunze, Malik Nabers, Xavier Worthy, Brian Thomas Jr, Chop Robinson, Dejean Cooper, and Mitchell Colts. Then add that their autos are all stickers, and you have an unappetizing prospect here.

We have also been seeing some quality control issues with the cards pulled. The packing process is mashing cards, and many of them are off-center.

Because this is a paper release, the cards have a relatively weak resale value. They do not adhere to Prizm or their Donruss Optic sister release.

Finally, some of the designs in this product are nice. However, the base cards are notably not among them. You can judge for yourself, but they seem highly uninspired to me.

2024 Panini Donruss Football checklist

The checklist for this product remains massive. Needlessly massive, at 400 cards. The Rated Rookies are the cards from #301 to #400.

It is worth noting that there are Optic (so chrome) versions of the Rated Rookies) cards, as well as retro and throwback varieties. The extensive checklist can be fun when you have a relatively cheap release intended for set completists.

But here we have a box that is over $400. Still, the blasters are inexpensive. You could complete the set from there.

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Parallels

• Jersey Number – (print runs vary; list below)
• Season Stat Line – (print runs vary; the list below)
• 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

Autos

The Rated Rookies have auto versions, which have traditionally been some of the best cards in this release. The set also includes Gridiron Kings Autographs, All-Time Gridiron Kings Autographs, and Rated Rookies Retro Autographs.

These are all on-card items, which lowers their desirability. If you look at comps for many of these cards, you will see that many of the most expensive ones are those from the days when these were on the cards. Indeed, they were beautiful on-card autos.

Therefore, this release is weak on autos. They are not particularly attractive and do not hold exceptionally high value, especially in recent years. But that is ok. The set has other strengths that make up for it.

Inserts

The main advantage of Donruss (whether football or basketball) is the excellent inserts it contains. Here are some of the best.

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Downtown

After Kaboom! Downtown is the most beloved insert in the business. They feature a landmark from the city where the player plays and tend to be successfully rendered and aesthetically pleasing. They come with Gold /10 and Black – 1/1 parallels.

The Jayden Daniels, Brock Bowers, and Caleb Williams will be among the release’s strongest cards, especially since there are no autos for many of the most desirable rookies. A PSA 10 copy of the Jayden Daniels recently sold for $5,200 on eBay.

In the Costco release of Donruss, there are jumbo Downtown cards. They are shorter print and could be more valuable in the long term. There is also a horizontal variety, with 20 players on the checklist.

Crunch Time

The Crunch Time inserts look like a cereal box, more Captain Crunch than anything else. The current design is one of the better and has that breakfast-time look.

Though everyone loves these cards, they don’t sell for much. The highest one I could find that has sold recently went for $1,000.

Gridiron Marvels

While the basketball version, Net Marvels, is more popular, the Gridiron Marvel equivalent is also excellent. These cards feature the biggest football stars in the Marvel superhero design style.

I have always believed that because of the cultural significance of Marvel, these cards will age well. They will be a reminder of a particular period in American culture and be one of the symbols of the Panini era. At least, that is my theory.

Right now, these cards are not worth that much. Even the biggest are usually valued at less than $1,000. So, there is much scope for investment there.

Other inserts

Aside from the bigger ones mentioned above, some other inserts are in Donruss Football. Many of them are strong. They include Action All-Pros, All-Time Gridiron Kings, Best of Instant, Bomb Squad, Champ is Here, Dominators, Galaxy of Stars, Production Line, Red Hot, Retro, Rookie Revolution, and others.

2024 Panini Donruss Football value

The value question for Panini Donruss is a bit more complex than others. A more significant gap exists between cheap retail products and the increasingly expensive hobby boxes.

Therefore, we will try to see if it is worth buying into both formats, either one of them or none of them.

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Wax

First, let’s look at how hobby box prices have increased over the years.

The hobby boxes don’t look like they offer much scope for profit. You must return to the pre-COVID bubble boxes to pay back the cost. The others are the same or worth a bit less than the current box.

Remember that this hobby box does not have autos from the most prominent players. Therefore, if anything, it will be worth less than these other boxes in the long run. That is not a great prospect.

What about blasters?

Your chances of making a profit off a blaster are significantly bigger. There are no blasters from previous years that do not offer a significant profit from a $25 price point. That gives you an idea of the better purchase, especially since some people report hitting Downtown cards and other big hits from blasters.

Singles

Donruss Football tends to have weaker hits than its Optic cousin. But the boxes are cheaper as well. So what kind of prices can you expect from the biggest hits in this product? Let’s look at the most significant sales of the past three months.

The top cards make it very clear that Downtown doesn’t even have any competition in the sweepstakes for the biggest card in this release. That means the lack of good autos is not the end of the world for this release.

Final word on 2024 Panini Donruss Football

So, what’s the verdict on 2024 Donruss Football? It’s a mixed bag, but one thing’s crystal clear: stick to the blasters.

The hobby boxes, priced north of $400, are rigid to justify. With sticker autos and missing signatures from the biggest rookies like Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels, you’re better off saving your money. The quality control issues don’t help either – nobody wants to pull off-center cards from a premium product.

But there’s still plenty to love here. The Downtown inserts remain some of the most stunning cards in the hobby, with recent PSA 10 Jayden Daniels copies selling for over $4,000.

The Gridiron Marvels and Crunch Time inserts maintain their charm, even if they’re not breaking the bank. And at $25, the blasters offer a legitimate shot at profit – every previous year’s blaster is now worth significantly more than its original price.

For set builders and insert chasers working with a modest budget, 2024 Donruss Football still hits the sweet spot. It’s not perfect, and Panini’s late release date (just days before the Super Bowl) is frustrating. But in a hobby where prices keep climbing, sometimes a simple paper product with great inserts is precisely what we need.

Just do yourself a favor and skip the hobby boxes. Your wallet will thank you later.

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