Five NFL Hall of Famers highlight 1990 Action Packed Rookie Update football cards
In this story:
With Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe's only rookie card included in the set, the 1990 Action Packed Rookie Update features rookie cards of five NFL players enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. No other set produced in 1990 can make such a claim, and with a key rookie card of NFL all-time rushing yardage leader Emmitt Smith leading the way, the embossed, gold-bordered set checks a lot of boxes for football card collectors.
The Junk Wax Era of sports cards was arguably at its height in 1990. Even in a year when manufacturers cranked up the printing presses, which caused print runs to skyrocket and long-term values to plummet, Action Packed left an indelible mark on the hobby with its 1990 Rookie Update series.
Unlike other sets like Fleer Update, Score Supplemental and Topps Traded, Action Packed Rookie Update was available for purchase as an 84-card complete set or in a 144-card box (24 packs per box and six cards per pack). With a sealed box selling for $45 on eBay on Friday, and a complete set going for $25 on July 20, collectors of all budgets can dive into the set for under $60.
RELATED: Top 1990 Topps Football Cards to Collect
The embossed style and gold borders made Action Packed different from other 1990 football releases, which were printed on standard trading card stock. Along with red trim accenting the Rookie Update cards (Series 1 cards are black), rookies in the Action Packed extended series stand out with a block-letter “R” on top of a red helmet in the upper right corner of the card.
Thirty-five years after its release, the set has value thanks to that strong rookie class.
Future Hall of Fame selections Frank Thomas and Larry Walker highlighted the year’s baseball releases, and the basketball rookie class was buoyed in the long run by Hall of Fame point guard Gary Payton. Still, five of the six members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame drafted in 1990 are a part of the Action Packed Rookie Update set (defensive line John Randle didn’t appear in any 1990 products, with his 1991 Pro Set card marking his hobby debut).
The cards aren’t rare or incredibly valuable, but Action Packed Rookie Update is memorable enough to contend for a place on the Mount Rushmore of Junk Wax Era football cards.
Five Key Football Cards from 1990 Action Packed Rookie Update
Leroy Butler (#10)
The man credited with popularizing the Lambeau Leap, Butler was a four-time first-team All-Pro safety who helped lead the Green Bay Packers to one of the franchise’s four Super Bowl titles, with a win over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2022, Butler’s Action Packed update card is arguably his most popular and valuable rookie.
With 502 PSA-graded copies in existence, according to GemRate, the most recent PSA 10 (population of 73) sale of Butler’s Action Packed rookie was a $256 high bid in a June 1 eBay auction.
Emmitt Smith (#34)
According to GemRate, the NFL’s all-time rushing yardage leader’s Action Packed card is Smith’s least popular rookie based on copies graded by PSA (3,942). The total pales in comparison to the number of PSA-graded copies of Smith’s Topps Traded (card #27T has been graded 20,143 times), Score Supplemental (12,193 graded copies of card #101T), Fleer Update (10,338 graded copies of card #U-40) and Pro Set (7,777 graded copies of card #685) rookie cards from 1990.
RELATED: The 1978 Topps Football Cards to Collect
Still, Smith’s Action Packed rookie stands out because of his five primary rookie cards, it’s the least likely to be graded a PSA 10. With only 213 copies in existence, only 5% of the 1990 first-round pick’s (No. 17 overall) Action Packed rookie cards submitted to PSA have received a Gem Mint 10 grade.
A PSA 10 went for $900 on May 22. For hobbyists wanting Smith’s Action Packed rookie without paying the high-grade premium, dropping down to a PSA 9 lowers the price point to under $50 (a $35 sale on Aug. 4 was the most recent verified eBay sale by Card Ladder).
Junior Seau (#38)
A 12-time Pro Bowl selection, the late legendary Chargers linebacker has rookie cards in the five primary NFL card releases produced in 1990. Seau, who was included in the Fleer Update (#U-102) and Topps Traded (#28T) sets, has flagship Score (#302) and Topps (#381) rookie cards, although the images are from his time as a collegiate standout with the USC Trojans.
The fifth overall pick of the 1990 draft, Seau’s Action Packed rookie card has a PSA 10 population of 109, the most recent of which sold on eBay for $170 on June 12.
Cortez Kennedy (#39)
Kennedy helped the Miami Hurricanes win collegiate national championships in 1987 and 1989 before becoming the first defensive player picked in the 1990 draft (No. 3 overall) by the Seattle Seahawks. Kennedy’s status as one of the top defensive tackles of his generation is best summarized by what he did in 1992, when a 14-sack season led to his selection as the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, even with the Seahawks posting a 2-14 record.
Even though defensive tackles don’t move the needle within the football card market, PSA 10 copies of Kennedy’s Action Packed Rookie Update (population of 41) have continued to increase in value since the hobby exploded in 2020. A PSA 10 sold for $400 on June 5, which was within striking distance of the highest Card Ladder-verified sale (a winning bid of $416.76 in an eBay auction on April 24).
Shannon Sharpe (#46)
One-half of the only siblings to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Sharpe’s only card manufactured in 1990 is his inclusion in the Action Packed Rookie Update set.
RELATED: The Top 1984 Topps Football Cards to Collect
A seventh-round draft choice who only recorded seven receptions for 99 yards and a touchdown in his rookie season with the Denver Broncos, it’s hard to fault the card companies for failing to produce multiple rookie cards of Sharpe. With a media persona arguably more noteworthy than his body of work on the field as one of the most accomplished tight ends in NFL history, Sharpe’s lone rookie card is in high demand.
There are only 59 Gem Mint 10 copies of Sharpe’s rookie card graded by PSA (1,549 total) in existence. According to Card Ladder, the last verified transaction was a $600 eBay sale on June 26, 2024.
-1f9b5aba42acf122a9de17edfe18f6ad.jpeg "Jeff Howe")
Jeff Howe is a sports writer with over two decades of professional experience contributing to ESPN.com, Rivals.com and the Sporting News, among other publications. He currently reports on the Texas Longhorns for “On Texas Football” after covering the Longhorns for 247Sports and CBS Sports. His hobby journey started when he was 6 years old, hanging out at his dad’s card shop and collecting cards alongside his two brothers.