Simply Spectra-cular: Panini America Offers Sweet First Look at 2013 Spectra Football

On a day when the biggest superstars in the NFL prepare to showcase their talents in the Pro Bowl, one of the biggest mysteries of the 2013 football trading card season is about to be revealed. Just what is Panini America’s 2013 Spectra Football? What does it look like? When does it come out? What surprises await inside its six-pack boxes? Good questions one and all. For the answers, keep reading.

Spectra first popped up on the collecting radar somewhat stealthily in late December, when the Week 16 Pepsi NEXT NFL Rookie of the Week nominees were revealed. In the weeks since, the anticipation surrounding the as-yet-unannounced product has intensified considerably. Last week, during the 2014 NFLPA Collegiate Bowl Presented By Panini, collectors caught their first glimpses of Spectra cards. Today, you’re going to get a whole lot more.

Simply put, 2013 Spectra Football is Panini America’s patented high-end Optichrome printing technology as you’ve never seen it. It’s a hit-filled thriller boasting a stunning arsenal of colored parallels and delivering six autographs (with at least two on-card and numbered to 99 or less) and six memorabilia cards numbered to 299 or less in every six-pack box. Spectra also includes the rousing debut of Panini America’s cut-across, hard-signed Pro Football Hall of Fame 50th Anniversary Class Autographs.

To be sure, Spectra’s highlights are many and include . . .

• Every box (six packs per box, five cards per pack) will deliver 12 autograph or memorabilia cards numbered to 299 or less, including at least two on-card autographs numbered to 99 or less.
• Each pack will contain one autograph and one memorabilia card numbered to 299 or less, two base cards and one parallel, rookie or insert card numbered to 99 or less.
• Find game-worn material cards from top rookies, including the Buffalo Bills’ Kiko Alonso.
• Look for on-card Pro Football Hall of Fame 50th Anniversary Signatures numbered to 50 or less.
• Spectra Signatures: On-card autographs of the NFL’s top current stars numbered to 49 or less with Blue (numbered to 25 or less), Red (numbered to 10 or less), Gold (numbered to five or less), Green (numbered to five or less) and Atomic Black (numbered to only one).
• Spectra Rookie Signature Materials: Autograph memorabilia cards featuring the top rookies of the 2013 class numbered to 99 or less with Blue (numbered to 49 or less), Red (numbered to 25 or less), Gold (numbered to 10 or less), Green (numbered to five or less) and Atomic Black, Green Laundry Tag Nike Swoosh and Green Laundry Tag NFL Players (all numbered to one).
• Rookie Premiere Date: An insert featuring the NFL debut dates of the top 2013 rookies numbered to 99 with Blue (numbered to 49 or less), Red (numbered to 25 or less), Gold (numbered to 10 or less), Green (numbered to five or less) and Atomic Black (numbered to only one) Prizm parallels.
• Spectra Signatures Materials: Ten elite players from the NFL featuring on-card autographs and jersey swatches numbered to 99 with Blue (numbered to 25 or less), Red (numbered to 10 or less), Gold (numbered to five or less), Green (numbered to five or less) and Atomic Black (numbered to one) Prizm parallels.
• Rookie Combo Materials: Featuring a pair of 2013 rookie swatches numbered to 99 or less with Blue (numbered to 49 or less), Red (numbered to 25 or less), Gold (numbered to 10 or less), Green (numbered to five or less), and Atomic Black, Green Laundry Tag Nike Swoosh, Green Laundry Tag NFL Shield and Green Laundry Tag NFL Players (all numbered to one) Prizm parallels.
• Rookie Materials: Rookie memorabilia insert featuring 60 of the top 2013 rookies, including several game-worn jerseys from non-RPS players with Blue (numbered to 49 or less), Red (numbered to 25 or less), Gold (numbered to 10 or less), Green (numbered to five or less) and Atomic Black (numbered to one) Prizm parallels.

We could quite literally go on and on about the benefits of 2013 Spectra Football, but we figure the product’s breathtaking cards themselves should do most of the talking. To that end, below is a quite impressive gallery featuring a few mock-ups and a whole lot more early autograph returns. Oh, and at the end of the gallery, we’ve provided a preliminary look at the product checklist. Enjoy, and stay tuned to The Knight’s Lance for additional coverage of 2013 Spectra Football.

All information is accurate at the time of posting. Content is subject to change. Card images are solely for the purpose of design display.

And here’s the preliminary checklist: 2013 Panini Spectra FB Checklist