Last night as I was choosing my "night shirt" (read: NFL Large Jersey), I took to counting them as the collection is at the point of taking up half the closet. It was a jaw-dropper! Thirty six!Then I get a call from my pal Shirley at the Fall Creek Post Office that I need to come in and sign for a package from Shanghai, China. Do you think I could recall my ordering something from Shanghai, China? The only thought that crossed my mind is that my musical cohort "One Man" Robert Johnson must have sent me a care package. He and the lovely Marge are the only people I know that live in Shanghai as they are teaching over there.
I walk into the post office and Shirley says" "Larry, you got lots of mail today! You have two packages and a bundle of mail! Have you been ordering football jerseys again?"
I look at the return address on the package from Shanghai. It's from JIA SHAN, GONGHE XIN ROAD, ROOM 2-2101. Oh -- now I remember. It's that Brett Favre "away" (white) jersey that I got through eBay two weeks ago.
Now, since I have been really delving into the world of NFL jersey collecting and have some that are game quality and some that are "learn by doing", I don't have really high expectations for this one. As soon as I get back in the car, I open the package and WOW! This jersey (pictured) is the best quality made jersey I have in my collection.
So if you are at all interested in what I have learned about collecting, let me explain what makes this a good jersey. If you are bored by this, time to surf elsewhere.
First, check the V-neck - sewn, stretch polyester with the official NFL Equipment shield prominently displayed. You will also notice that the yoke of the jersey is very shiny. The correct description for that material is "dazzle". Next time you watch an NFL game in High Def see if you don't find that the players are wearing the exact same material.
On this jersey are sewn in "stretch" panels, another give-away that this one is authentic. NFL players want their jerseys to fit them tightly so that when an oppenent grabs and holds, referees can see that they have a handful of stretchy jersey.
More indications of authenticity are the sewn on twill numerals, the blue "jock tag" on the bottom hem which indicates size, the fact that the back of the jersey is cut longer than the front so that the jersey will stay tucked in, and the extra of elasticized cuffs on the sleeves.
The capper on this jersey that puts it a cut above all the others I own is the woven-in sleeve stripes. All my other would-be game jerseys have sleeves with silk screened stripes.
School's out.
So now, with the two I got in today (the other is a heavy knit version of a home (black) 1991 Falcons Brett Favre jersey) I now have 38 jerseys and I swear I only have one to go - I have to find either a home or away Joe Willie Namath (#12) Jets jersey. then I am done -- moving one!
After scanning eBay for months, I still haven't found the one I want. I am not about to pay the three hundred dollars that Mitchell and Ness wants for authentic reproductions.
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