Hi all, this is the start of another recurring series, where we open a full (personal) case of a product and review it for you, as well as show you the top 5 cards we got out of the case. Hobby boxes are pretty hit and miss regardless of the set you’re ripping, and although cases aren’t immune, with a larger sample size the goal is that it will give you a pretty solid look at what kind of value you can expect.
With that being said here are some general thoughts on 2022 Bowman U Chrome Football! Overall the case is a very fun rip, the checklist isn’t particularly large so there’s a bit of repetition. The smaller checklist though contributes to a higher value from the auto hits, where there isn’t much bloat of low value players to lose money on. In my opinion, a small checklist (100 players) like this with some high value QB auto hits is worth the money any day.
The only real downside here is this is from 2022 which was an absolutely terrible year for card quality from Bowman & Topps, and a lot of the base chrome cards have clear defects. Most of the parallels and autos fare much better but you’re still going to have a relatively low percentage of 10s if you want to rip and grade this product, so buyer beware.
That being said, we still hit some amazing cards and had a great time, so without further ado here are the top 5 cards we got from our case rip!
#5 Will Levis Yellow Refractor Auto #/75 | Est. Value: $60
Will Levis in all reality has lost the starting job to Cameron Ward heading into this year, but anything can happen in the NFL. If Ward gets hurt or struggles over the course of a few games to start the season, we could see more of him, and with a roster that by and large should be improved over last year. There’s also the potential to ride the bench for a couple seasons and then come back older, wiser, and more successful a la Geno Smith, Sam Darnold, etc.
#4 Bijan Robinson Lava Refractor Auto #/199 | Est. Value: $60
Bijan Robinson took a massive leap forward in 2024, showing out with 15 total TDs, 1456 rushing yards, and 431 receiving yards. This is up year over year from 2023 where he finished with 8 TDs, 976 rushing yards, and 487 receiving yards. Even though the receiving yards were down slightly, the jump in rushing yards came while going from 214 attempts to 304 while still boosting his average yards/rush from 4.6 to 4.8.
He is an absolute stud consistently ranked in the top 3 fantasy RBs and I don’t see that changing any time soon.
#3 Jaxson Dart Bowman 1st Auto | Est. Value: $90
Jaxson Dart was selected 25th overall by the Giants this year after they traded up 3 spots to get him, indicating a level of desire beyond just best available that bodes well for his opportunity to become their next franchise QB. He consistently improved year over year during his college career, ending in a massive breakout season at Ole Miss in 2024 where he earned First-team ALL-SEC honors while passing for 4,279 yards with a 29:6 TD:INT rate.
He is going to be starting the season behind Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston on the QB depth chart but time to develop is definitely not a bad thing, and with their veteran mentorship he should be in a great spot to take over as the Giants’ primary pass thrower by next season.
#2 Cam Ward Lava Refractor Bowman 1st Autos #/199 | Est. Value: $180(x2)
It’s crazy but we got two of these in the same case! The lava refractors are beautiful and it’s awesome to get two numbered autos of the #1 overall pick by the Titans in the 2024 draft.
After declaring and subsequently withdrawing from the draft in 2023, he transferred to Miami to boost his draft stock which turned out to be a winning proposition. At Miami he led the ACC in passing yards and touchdowns (4,313 and 39 respectively), won ACC Player of the year, and finished fourth in Heisman voting.
He’s expected to immediately take over the starting job in Tennessee, where he will be walking into a situation that could comfortably be described as less than optimal. He’ll have plenty of runway though and if a couple of the rookie WRs they added develop well he will still have a great chance to succeed.
#1 C.J. Stroud Lava Refractor Auto Bowman 1st #/199 | Est. Value: $275
C.J. Stroud had an amazing coming out party for the Texans in 2023, blowing away people as the OROY and embarrassing the Panthers, who passed him over to take Bryce Young as the 1st overall (who struggled mightily in his first year).
He cooled off a bit as far as the counting stats in 2024, throwing for 54 less YPG and spiking interceptions from 5 to 12, but he still led the Texans to a playoff run. He also had to deal with fewer high quality weapons to throw to for a good chunk of the season, a situation the Texans have tried to address for this year with the additions of Jayden Higgens and Jaylin Noel.
I think he is due for some positive regression this year and continues to offer upside as a gunslinger who isn’t turning 24 until October. This seems to be the consensus as his card value remains high but could quickly rise if he comes out hot to start the 2025 season.
All in all a great amount of value from this case! Usually with opening Bowman you have to wait a few years to see how you did because of the volatile nature of prospects, but given that this product had already aged a few years it was a lot of fun and I think we can safely say we did pretty well here.
Let us know in the comments what you think and if you have any other products you think would be a fun rip we’ll keep it in mind for future iterations.