"1972 Topps Sam Brunelli #203 Denver Broncos Tackle VG-EX Purple Border Vintage"

"Description

You're looking at an increasingly scarce piece of Denver Broncos history - the 1972 Topps Sam Brunelli card #203 in exceptional condition! This vintage treasure captures the early Broncos era well before their Super Bowl successes.

The iconic purple-bordered design of the 1972 Topps set is legendary among serious collectors for its distinctive look and notorious condition sensitivity. Finding these vintage gems in this condition becomes more challenging with each passing year!

As knowledgeable collectors understand, the purple borders of this set are extremely susceptible to chipping and wear, making well-preserved examples like this one increasingly difficult to locate. The scarcity of high-grade examples continues to drive values upward as vintage football gains deserved recognition.

This card captures Sam Brunelli during his prime as the Broncos' starting left tackle, a key building block in what would eventually become the famous ""Orange Crush"" team of the late 1970s. The vibrant red Broncos jersey pops against the purple border in a way that modern cards simply cannot match!

Offensive linemen cards from this era are experiencing a collecting renaissance as sophisticated collectors seek out the overlooked heroes who made the game possible. These cards were historically underappreciated, making well-preserved examples increasingly difficult to find.

Condition

This card is in remarkable Very Good to Excellent condition - truly outstanding preservation for a card over 50 years old! The notorious purple borders, which typically show significant wear and chipping, remain impressively intact.

The corners display minimal wear, retaining much of their original sharpness - a true rarity for cards from this vintage set which typically suffer from significant corner damage after decades of storage.

The edges are clean with minimal whitening, showing none of the typical excessive wear or roughness so common with 1972 Topps football cards. This level of edge preservation is increasingly difficult to find.

Centering is quite good with only a slight off-center bias - far better than typically found in the notoriously poorly centered 1972 Topps production run. Many examples from this set suffer from extreme centering issues.

The surface retains excellent color vibrancy with minimal surface wear. The bright red of Brunelli's Broncos jersey remains rich and unfaded - a problem area that often deteriorates on lesser examples.

The card back is clean and fully readable, with all biographical information intact and legible. The cartoon illustration remains clear and appealing with good color retention.

Card Details

• Player: Sam Brunelli

• Position: Offensive Tackle (T)

• Team: Denver Broncos

• Card Number: #203

• Year: 1972

• Set: Topps Football

• Special Note: Features veteran offensive lineman who was a North Carolina standout

• College: University of North Carolina (Lineman of the Year)

• Era: Pre-Super Bowl Broncos/Early Orange Crush building phase

• Interesting Fact: The back notes his impressive strength as a weight lifter who could bench press his weight eleven times

Rarity

The 1972 Topps Football set is becoming increasingly difficult to find in acceptable condition, particularly due to the notorious purple borders that show even the slightest wear and damage.

With each passing year, the supply of vintage cards from this era continues to diminish as cards are lost, damaged, or permanently sealed in graded slabs in long-term collections.

Offensive linemen cards were often overlooked and poorly preserved by collectors of the era, making high-grade examples particularly scarce today. This historical neglect has created unexpected rarity in today's more sophisticated collecting market.

The 1972 Topps set holds particular significance for vintage football collectors as it captures an important transitional period in NFL history and features a distinctive design unlike any other football card issue.

Broncos team collectors take note - cards from the pre-Super Bowl era are experiencing significant price increases as collectors seek to document the complete franchise history prior to their championship success.

Collector's Note

The market for vintage football cards from the early 1970s has experienced remarkable growth in recent years, with well-preserved examples commanding unprecedented premiums. This particular era represents the sweet spot of collectibility - old enough to be truly vintage but recent enough to find in collectable condition.

Savvy collectors are increasingly focusing on condition rarity rather than just star power, recognizing that well-preserved examples of cards with colored borders are the true rarities in today's market.

This is potentially your ONLY CHANCE to own this increasingly elusive 1972 Topps Sam Brunelli card in such impressive condition! As graded population reports continue to stabilize, the truly exceptional examples are being locked away in long-term collections.

Denver Broncos team collectors take note - vintage offensive linemen from the team's formative years are essential pieces for any comprehensive team collection that documents the franchise's evolution from AFL expansion team to NFL powerhouse.

This is a must-have addition for any serious vintage football collection, 1972 Topps set build, Denver Broncos team collection, or offensive line specialist focus.

Buy multiple cards and pay only ONE low shipping cost!

Don't Wait - Act Now!

The window of opportunity to acquire vintage football cards from this era in respectable condition continues to narrow as more collectors enter the market and existing examples deteriorate or disappear into permanent collections.

Don't miss this rare opportunity to own a genuine piece of Denver Broncos history from their pre-Super Bowl era before it disappears into another collection for decades!"

 _gsrx_vers_1715 (GS 9.9.2 (1715))

Condition: Ungraded

Item specifics

Offered by Gosla Antiques & Collectibles, purveyors of antiquities, curiosities and collectible wares. Dispatched from Pennsylvania, United States, with tracking.