The Best Football MVPs to Collect

Collect the Rookie Cards of Football MVPs From Every Era

Football card collectors love to collect current superstars and NFL Hall of Famers. Playoffs and award season always highlight new players worth collecting. If you want to level up your collection with more of the game’s best players, here are some of the best football MVPs to collect.

Multi-Time Football MVPs to Collect

There have been 11 players in NFL history who have won multiple MVP Awards. Peyton Manning leads the way with 5 MVP Awards, and Aaron Rodgers is right behind him with 4 MVPs. Four players – Tom Brady, Brett Favre, Johnny Unitas, and Jim Brown – have 3 MVPs each. Five players – Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Kurt Warner, Steve Young, and Joe Montana – each have 2 MVPs.

Legendary players like Unitas, Brown, Montana, and Young debuted during a time when there weren’t as many sports card releases as we have today. This gives them a single iconic rookie card to collect. For Unitas, that’s in 1957 Topps. Brown’s rookie card is in 1958 Topps, Montana’s is in 1981 Topps, and Young’s is in 1986 Topps.

It might be difficult to find authentic copies in good condition of Unitas and Brown’s rookie cards, and if you do, it’ll cost a pretty penny. Montana and Young’s rookie cards are easier to find and much more affordable.

As we get to players who debuted in the 1990s and 2000s, they have more than one rookie card. Favre’s rookie cards are found in 1991 football card sets such as Topps, Score, Pro Set, Fleer, and Upper Deck. Manning’s rookie cards are found in 1998 sets, including Topps, Upper Deck, Fleer, and more. Warner’s rookie cards are in a variety of 1999 football card releases, including Collector’s Edge, Topps, Upper Deck, Donruss, Fleer, and more.

Brady has more than 40 official rookie cards in 2000 football card sets. The most popular are those from Upper Deck, Playoff, Topps, and Leaf. Like Brady, Rodgers also has more than 40 official rookie cards. His cards are found in 2005 football card sets, the most popular being from Upper Deck, Playoff, and Topps.

Thanks to the modern era of football card collecting, Mahomes and Jackson have plenty of rookie cards to choose from. All of Mahomes’ official rookie cards are in 2017 Panini products. Some of the most popular are found in the Prizm and Donruss Optic sets. Jackson’s rookie cards came a year later in 2018 Panini sets. His most popular rookie cards are also in Prizm and Donruss Optic.

Other NFL MVP Award Winners to Collect

There are many other popular players who have won the NFL MVP Award that are worth collecting. Josh Allen, the 2024 winner and one of the best quarterbacks in the league, has his rookie card in 2018 Panini sets. If we look back to the last 25 years, Matt Ryan (2008 rookie card), Cam Newton (2011), Adrian Peterson (2007), and LaDainian Tomlinson (2001) are other football MVPs to collect.

Many players in the NFL Hall of Fame have won the MVP Award, making them favorites among football card collectors. These include Terry Bradshaw (1971 rookie card), Walter Payton (1976), Lawrence Taylor (1982), Dan Marino (1984), Barry Sanders (1989), Emmitt Smith (1990), and Marshall Faulk (1994).

2025 NFL MVP Candidates

The 2025 NFL MVP race has come down to two players: Matthew Stafford and Drake Maye. Stafford is a veteran quarterback having a career year, while Maye has taken a huge step forward in his second year in the NFL. Stafford’s rookie cards are in 2009 releases, while Maye’s are in 2024 releases. Whoever wins the award, you can add them to your list of football MVPs to collect.

Other longshots to win the 2025 NFL MVP you can consider adding to your football card collection are Trevor Lawrence, Justin Herbert, Bo Nix, and Caleb Williams. Herbert’s rookie cards are found in 2020 football card releases, Lawrence’s in 2021, and both Nix and Williams are in the 2024 rookie class.

Pick Your Favorite Football MVPs to Collect

Whether you love collecting vintage football cards or prefer the sports’ modern stars, collecting rookie cards from NFL MVPs is always a good idea! Check out the AA Mint Cards online store for specific football cards or rip a Mint City multi-sport repack for the chance to pull other great cards.