1972 Topps Football Cards

To my knowledge, 1972 Topps cards were the only vintage football cards to be released in three series. The first series contained cards 1-132, the second contained cards 79 and 133-263, and the third contained cards 264-361. Topps included card number 79, the second series checklist, in both the first and second series, so it is a double print.

Third series 1972 Topps cards were released late in the football season (I remember getting a pack from my brother for Christmas), and apparently many of them went unsold. Because relatively few of the third series cards made in into circulation in 1972, the price guides have them valued much higher than cards from the first two series. However, many (or most) of the excess third series cards were not destroyed in 1972; rather, a large dealer bought them from Topps and stored them. The dealer has been selling the unopened cards in recent years, and the cards are no longer difficult to find. Of course, since the cards were recently opened, most of them are in top condition. There are still plenty of unopened third series cards available, and their prices continue to decline. Perhaps because the multiple series did not work well in 1972, Topps released its 1973 football cards--all 528 of them--in a single series.

Rookie cards of Pro Football Hall of Famers in the 1972 Topps set: Ted Hendricks, Charlie Joiner, Larry Little, John Riggins, Roger Staubach, Emmitt Thomas, Gene Upshaw, Rayfield Wright, Ron Yary. Rookie cards of Heisman Trophy winners in the 1972 Topps set: Steve Owens, Jim Plunkett, Steve Spurrier.