Caleb Williams Rookie Card Prices Surge After Miracle Comeback Against Packers
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After a record seventh fourth-quarter comeback victory, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has a new nickname, Iceman. The moniker is a reference to the ice water flowing through the signal caller's veins as he remains impossibly cool under pressure, leading his once hapless squad to victory after improbable victory. Until recently, however, Iceman could have just as soon applied to the ice cold market for the young quarterback's football cards, which had barely moved since his anemic 5-14 start.
RELATED: Caleb Williams football cards fail to keep pace with quarterback's success
Just how insane was the Bears comeback against the Pack? For one thing, the team's 25 fourth quarter points were more than Fernando Mendoza and Indiana scored in any quarter against Oregon in Friday's shellacking of the Ducks. For another, the Bears NEVER beat the Packers. Heading into Saturday night's action, the last time a Bears quarterback logged two wins against Green Bay you were chasing Todd Van Poppel cards and Nolan Ryan autos from packs of Upper Deck.
in baseball, we call this a wheeeeeeeee! pic.twitter.com/qK1urhEmPS
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) January 11, 2026
With miracle comebacks more or less Caleb's calling card these days, it would make sense that his card prices are responding in kind. In fact, it would seem utterly obvious that his rookie card today would be selling for more than it was following Chicago's 52-21 drubbing at the hands of the Lions in week two. Nineteen games into the young quarterback's career, even with a new head coach, the former number one draft pick appeared to be a bust. Today, he may be the game's most exciting player. Ever.
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Sure enough, the numbers finally "Bear" this out. Just after the Bears hit rock bottom against Jared Goff and the Lions, sports card price tracking site Card Ladder had Caleb's 2024 Panini Rated Rookie card at $35 in PSA 10. Then Caleb and his Bears won ten of their next twelve games, with Williams a cross between Joe Montana and Harry Houdini, and that same card barely nudged, its Card Ladder value coming in at $39. That Caleb's card prices remained flat throughout the Bears resurgence was the lead story on Collectibles on SI back on December 16.
Of course that was then. This is now. Today Card Ladder pegs that same Rated Rookie as a $75 card. In other words, the price has just about doubled in under a month. Still, that's not to say collectors completely missed their chance to buy low. Surprisingly, there are still a handful of "Buy It Now" listings on eBay for under $70 including one for only $50. (Good chance the seller is a Packers fan!)
Depending what Caleb Williams does from here should have everything to do with where Caleb's card goes next. That's hardly a controversial statement. That's more or less how the Hobby works, plain and simple. That said, at least in the case of Caleb, that's exactly how the Hobby didn't seem to work for much of the 2025 season. It was as if some glitch in the Hobby matrix had Williams rookie cards impossibly behind the rest of the market with no hope of ever finding their way out. And then collectors blinked and looked up at the scoreboard, and what do you know. The Iceman found his way back on top.
Jason A. Schwartz is a collectibles expert whose work can be found regularly at SABR Baseball Cards, Hobby News Daily, and 1939Bruins.com. His collection of Hank Aaron baseball cards and memorabilia is currently on exhibit at the Atlanta History Center, and his collectibles-themed artwork is on display at the Honus Wagner Museum and PNC Park.