The Hobby Bowl

New England Patriots vs Seattle Seahawks

We’re bringing you a little nonsense this week.

This year’s NFL playoffs were something special. Damn near every game seemed like a nail-biter with late leads, wild swings, and just enough chaos to keep fans glued to the screen. But only two teams get a chance at the ultimate prize, and this year the Patriots and Seahawks punched their tickets.

Now, we’re supposed to wait two more weeks. Or are we?

We’re not exactly known for patience here at The Hobby Wire, so we decided to throw our own championship. And if there’s a better way to predict a Super Bowl winner than by letting the card market decide, we don’t wanna hear it.

So, without further ado…

HOBBY BOWL I

Patriots vs Seahawks

The Rules

We go head-to-head using PSA 10 Prizm Silver Rookie cards from each of the following positions from their ESPN depth chart.
- QB
- WR 1
- RB 1
- TE
*If a player does not have a PSA 10 Silver available, raw prices are used for both players at that position.

Scoring works like this:
- Higher average price from the last five sales = 1 point
- Larger price increase since the start of the season = 1 point

In the event of a tie, the winning team will be determined by which 2nd-string QB has the highest last recorded sale.

1st Quarter: QBs

Drake Maye vs Sam Darnold

The Patriots wasted no time setting the tone.

Sam Darnold put together a respectable season in the hobby, with his Silver Prizm climbing from $250 in the preseason to $575 today — a solid 130% jump. That’ll move the chains most weeks.

But this wasn’t most weeks.

Drake Maye came out looking like an MVP frontrunner, with cards selling for nearly three times the price of Darnold and a jaw-dropping 321% increase since the preseason. The Patriots punch in two quick scores.

End of 1st:
Patriots 2 — Seahawks 0

2nd Quarter: RBs

Rhamondre Stevenson vs Kenneth Walker III

Seattle needed an answer — and they got one.

Kenneth Walker III is becoming a hobby darling as far as running backs go, averaging $62.20 across his last five sales while ballooning 145% since the start of the season. That’s production you can set your watch to.

On the other sideline, Rhamondre Stevenson’s market stalled out. Despite New England’s strong year, his cards dipped 4%. The emergence of Treyvon Henderson may have siphoned off some hobby confidence.

Seattle ties it up. Suddenly we’ve got a ballgame heading into halftime!

Halftime:
Patriots 2 — Seahawks 2

3rd Quarter: WRs

Stefon Diggs vs Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Momentum is swinging hard. The Seahawks are starting to pull away with this one!

Jaxon Smith-Njigba puts on an absolute clinic, more than doubling Diggs’ average sale price and posting a massive 262% increase. Meanwhile, Diggs’ preseason average of $80.33 slid all the way down to $51.

It’s the classic hobby storyline: the future vs the familiar. And right now, the market is sprinting toward the next big thing.

Seattle comes out of the locker room firing and takes full control.

End of 3rd:
Patriots 2 — Seahawks 4

4th Quarter: TEs

Hunter Henry vs AJ Barner

Things start getting chippy on the gridiron.

With no PSA 10 sales on record for AJ Barner, the slabs come off and we head to raw prices.

Barner’s Silver Prizm averages $1.63, climbing from $0.99 to $1.99 on the season — a respectable 101% increase.

That looked like enough.

Until Hunter Henry stepped up.

Henry’s raw Silver Prizm averages $2.96 and exploded for a 405% increase over the course of the season. A clutch performance when New England needed it most, and just like that, we’re heading to overtime.

End of Regulation
Patriots 4 — Seahawks 4

OVERTIME

Quick refresher: highest last recorded sale from the 2nd-string QB wins it.

Those QBs?
Joshua Dobbs for New England.
Drew Lock for Seattle.

The Patriots win the toss and elect to kick — bold strategy.

Drew Lock sets the mark first, with his Silver Prizm Rookie last selling for $50.

Pressure’s on. Can Dobbs really beat this?

Joshua Dobbs answers with a $55 sale on his 2017 Prizm Rookie.

That’s the game.

Final:
Patriots 5 — Seahawks 4

Post Game

Sometimes it comes down to stars.
Sometimes it’s depth.
Sometimes it’s a $5 difference on a backup quarterback card.

The Patriots take home the inaugural Hobby Bowl trophy, surviving a wild back-and-forth that had momentum swinging all night. Seattle fans can argue the tape, but the comps don’t lie.

Does this guarantee anything on Super Bowl Sunday? Absolutely not.
Will we be doing this again next year? Without question.

If this all feels a little silly, good. We just crowned a champion using comps, market momentum, and a backup quarterback tiebreaker — all based on the values of pictures of athletes printed on cardboard. That’s the hobby in a nutshell. A little irrational. A little emotional. Way more fun than it should be.

Same chaos, same cardboard. We’ll see you next year for Hobby Bowl II!

---

Disclaimer: The content in The Hobby Wire is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Commentary, analysis, and opinions on sports cards, rookies, and the hobby are not financial, investment, or professional advice. Collectors should always do their own research before buying, selling, or trading cards. Market values are volatile and can change rapidly—past performance is not a guarantee of future results.

Unless specified, all pricing references are based on the Prizm/Refractor parallels of an athlete's Chrome rookie card, with prices from Market Movers, alt.xyz & 130pt.com.


Any odds mentioned were derived from DraftKings Sportsbook.