That 90's Card: 1996 Actions Packed Derrick Thomas

That 90's Card: 1996 Fleer Metal Eric Turner

That 90's Card: 1997-1998 Topps Stadium Club Samaki Walker

That 90's Card: 1996 Pinnacle Zenith Gus Frerotte

That 90's Card: 1995 Score Seth Joyner

That 90's Card: 1998-1999 Skybox Premium Carl Herrera

That 90's Card: 1995 Skybox Impact Garrison Hearst

That 90's Card: 1997 Leaf Brad Johnson

That 90's Card: 1996 Playoff Trophy Contenders Neil O'Donnell

There is nothing like base card designs in the 90's and how great they look, this is another prime example.

Playoff branched off their successful Playoff Contenders brand from 1995 and came up with the idea for Trophy Contenders. The base cards looked very cool with the layered look of gold trophies, then blue (and other colors depending on the player) counter top look, and a player on top of that. The base cards were also a bit thicker than most which made for a high-end product back in 1996.

You can find most base card singles now for roughly $1 and boxes can run you upwards of $90.

To me, this product was a little under rated. It not only had a fun base card design, but some excellent inserts which is what the 90's were all about. Just like the under rated player I chose today.

Neil O'Donnell played 14 seasons in the NFL with 4 NFL Teams. He led the Pittsburgh Steelers to Super Bowl 30 where threw two costly interceptions leading to a Steelers loss. Despite those two interceptions in the Super Bowl, he ended his career with the lowest interception percentage in NFL history, averaging just 2.11 interceptions for every 100 pass attempts. However, since then, Aaron Rodgers has broken his record.

Let's hear your thoughts on today's 90's card!

That 90's Card: 1993-1994 Topps Stadium Club John Williams

One of the nicer photographed set of the 90's was Topps Stadium Club. Topps did an amazing job capturing moments during games for MLB, NFL and this one for the NBA. The product also used a very clean design with its borderless photography.

I chose this card today, I am sure it's one of many Stadium Club ones I will post, because it's from my Knicks PC. The photograph used on it is pretty cool as well because it made me think back to the Knicks/Bulls rival days when Jordan would come to the Garden and always found a way to win. Funny thing is I couldn't stand MJ in the 90's because of that, but now I am a fan.

Nostalgic 90's Cards

I PC many things as you all know, and one of those many things is 90's cards. Now when I say 90's cards, I mainly mean from 95-99 but I also collect some of the older ones as well. Why do I collect them? The biggest is because of the nostalgia they bring. But, there are other reasons as well.

90's cards bring me much nostalgia. They make me remember a time where there were card shows, card shops and places that sold cards EVERYWHERE. They also make me think about collecting with my father as that was a big bonding experience between us. It makes me remember a time where I had friends and neighbors who like to collect. It makes me remember a time when buying a box of cards didn't mean throwing the base cards off to the side because they were too stinkin cool. They also make me think about a time where it wasn't about pulling the big "HITS" and more about pulling one sweet insert at tough odds. It makes me remember the variety there was on the shelves such as being able buy from 5 different companies with an NFL license and I could try each one.

Today's hobby is still fun, I just find the hobby back then was A LOT more fun and that's why I chase down and acquire these cards for the memories and for fun. Yes, those cards don't have much value. But, that's not why I collect. I don't collect for value. I don't collect for an investment. I don't rip and sell, I don't sell cards I win from contests, I don't sell at all. The hobby to me isn't about values, investments and selling, it's about having fun. Isn't that why we all do it? (Yes, I can see some of you shaking your heads in disagreement)

This year has been a big year for my 90's collection as I have been trying to fill in pieces I have lost over the years. Things are a lot cheaper to replace now than it would have been back then. I have also been picking up pieces I have always wanted and have done this mostly through trading but I have bought some too. Some of the key pieces I have picked up so far this year have been the 1996, 1997 Spx football sets, the 1997, 1998 Ex2000's sets, 1996 Spx Football autographs of Joe Montana and Dan Marino, and the 1998 Flair Showcase Football Row 3 set. I have also picked up some rookie and insert singles that I once had. There is still a LONG ways to go.

So to finish up this post, I thought it would be fun to take a quick trip down that 90's memory lane to give some of you nostaligia and show others that didn't collect in that era how great it was. This is another reason why I do That 90's Card posts.

Wow. Just wow. Just makes me smile seeing these again. The only thing that is missing from this post is a song from Hootie and the Blowfish. So I recommend you looking one up and listening to it as you gaze at this gallery because I am listening to one as I type it. For those of you who may not know who they are, Google will be a great resource and you will be glad you found them. Just like you would be glad to have some 90's cards in your collection if you don't yet.

That 90's Card: 1995-1996 Fleer Metal Mark Jackson

Fleer Metal was one of my favorite products in the 90's and still is to this day.  This card is from the first season that Metal came out and has a pretty cool appeal to it. I like the silver "metal" background that makes it look as if Mark Jackson is dribbling down the court on the card.

I am glad that Upper Deck revived this once lost brand in the last few years.I just wished I could have pulled a PMG back in those days but at least I can say that I did now.

That 90's Card: 1995 Action Packed Jerome Bettis

In a game that is ACTION PACKED, Pinnacle wanted us to get a FEEL of the game with their Action Packed product. Despite this product having been out for awhile, 1995 was the first one I first started to collect. I not only liked the feel of the cards with the gloss "raised" player against the dull feel of the card, but I also like that they used no border and full action shots. Some of the pictures they used were pretty sweet as well.

That 90's Card: 1995 Pro Line Classic POGS Steve McNair/Gary Brown

Pro Line Classic was smart, it targeted a very popular game at the time and combined it with sports cards. This was a great marketing idea to draw in those collectors/players of Pogs into the sports card world.

Because honestly, who wasn't chasing down all of their favorite cardboard pieces whether in full card form or in circle form.

That 90's Card: 1997-1998 NBA Hoops League Leader Shawn Bradley

This card is psychedelic man! This Hoops design was actually one of the better ones. Tie-dye colors, team logo in the background and a full colored player in the front. This was what the 90's were all about.

That 90's Card: 1995 Collectors Choice Quad Sticker Chris Doleman, Frank Reich, Derek Brown, Jerry Rice

Who doesn't miss these? Or miss Collector's Choice in general. It was affordable and had many fun aspects to it. I really hope that Upper Deck thinks about bringing this back someday and hopefully showing them my favorite sticker will help!

That 90's Card: 1998-1999 Upper Deck Black Diamond Dikembe Mutombo

Shiny. Micro-etched. Parallels. Everything about Black Diamond I enjoyed.

I think my favorite part about Black Diamond was chasing the Diamond Parallels in packs. This particular card is just a base with a single diamond. You can tell this by the one diamond above Dikembe on the left side. The chase for these parallels goes all the way up to quad diamonds. Each level of diamonds also had a different color of etching so it was never too hard to spot in packs when you had pulled one. Especially a bigger one such as gold or emerald for triple and quad diamonds.

That 90s Card: 1996 Fleer Ultra Larry Centers

That 90's Card: 1997 Topps Stadium Club Kevin Hardy

That 90's Card: 1997 New Pinnacle Matt Williams

Bold photographs, nice card stock, no border and some color with a touch of rainbow foil and you have this collector drawn in. It's products like this one that I wished Panini could bring back.