1981 Coca-Cola Football (Giants and Colts)

 

Ever since sharing that 1981 Redskins set, I’ve been trying to track down the remaining Coca-Cola team issues. From a purely technical standpoint, these cards are identical to the standard Topps flagship release, but for a "food-card junkie" like me, that red-and-white branding makes all the difference. There is just something uniquely nostalgic about cards distributed through regional promotions and grocery store endcaps.

I’m thrilled to report that my quest to assemble the full 1981 run hit a nice milestone this week. I finally unearthed two more elusive team sets to add to the collection, bringing me a few steps closer to finishing this specialized set. They might not offer new stats or different photography, but for a niche collector, the hunt for these regional variations is half the fun.

As with the Redskins set, the team card isn't really a checklist.  It's just an offer for an uncut sheet of all the team sets.  That offer expired back on April 30th, 1982, so I'm only 44 years late to order that.

I might not be able to order an uncut sheet, but in today's digital world I can create my own.  The Baltimore Colts struggled a bit in 1980 ending the season with a 7-9 record, so it is fitting that we're not getting any cards here with an All-Pro designation, but we are treated with a rookie card of both Curtis Dickey (5th overall pick) and Ray Butler (taken in the 4th round).

The 1980 version of the New York Giants had a bad year, finishing with a 4-12 record.  Yet, probably due to East Coast bias, they had 2 players voted as All-Pro's (I'm guessing Dave Jennings earned his spot since bad teams tend to punt often).  We don't get any rookie cards with this team set but we do have a 3rd year player card of Phil Simms.

Of the seven football team sets issued - Redskins, Chargers, Colts, Cowboys, Giants, Cardinals and Oilers - I now have 3.  Someday I hope to own them all.

Thanks for stopping by and happy hunting!