2023 Panini Absolute Vertical KABOOM! Green #K12 CJ Stroud - PSA 9 | 1 of 1 | Rookie Card

One of the young faces of the NFL, CJ Stroud has put the league on notice and placed himself in the company of the game’s elite in a very short period of time.

After being drafted 2nd overall in the 2023 NFL Draft, Stroud massively turned around a despondent last-place Houston Texans team. By leading them to a division title and a playoff win, he became the first rookie since the merger to accomplish such a dramatic turnaround. He joined the exclusive company of Tom Brady and Joe Montana as the only quarterbacks in league history to lead all passers in yards per game and TD-INT ratio in the same season and did so at just 22 years old. In 2024, Stroud is determined to not only match his extraordinary first campaign by returning to the playoffs, but exceed it by challenging for MVP if not The Vince Lombardi Trophy.

The card, the singular green print of Stroud’s inaugural vertical KABOOM!, commemorates Stroud’s stellar rookie season in which he was named as the AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and received his first Pro Bowl honors.

Given how explosively Stroud has entered the elite quarterback conversation, the KABOOM! insert is a fitting reflection of Stroud’s campaign. KABOOM!, an ultra-rare set within the Panini Absolute Football checklist, is perhaps the most coveted insert to chase in contemporary card collecting. This is amplified for Stroud, as he signed an exclusive deal with Fanatics and hasn’t yet featured on NFL licensed autographed rookie cards, with the lone exception of a Panini Instant release limited to 391 prints. Without the chance to pull licensed rookie autographs, this one-of-a-kind vertical green KABOOM! is likely one of the finest Stroud cards produced, at the time of cataloging.  

KABOOM! inserts were first released in the 2013-14 release of Panini Innovation Basketball, when Panini commissioned artist Gyula Nemeth to create 20 unique comic book-style designs of NBA stars. Four weeks later, Nemeth delivered the designs that would form the basis of one of Panini’s most popular inserts across all sports. KABOOM! was an instant hit, and Panini brought Nemeth back the next year to illustrate the 2014-15 set, this time in Panini Excalibur Basketball. In the years since, these inserts have continued to rise in popularity and become a key entry in many players’ annual checklists. KABOOM! cards have spread into American football, baseball, soccer, and beyond, and “Kaboom” as a phrase has become part of the hobby lexicon, synonymous with all manners of big hits. The first American football Kabooms came out in 2018 Panini Rewards packs, and ever since the football inserts have found their home in Panini Absolute. The KABOOM! insert has found its way into the hearts of collectors and looks poised to remain so. 

In this set, there were horizontal and vertical versions of the KABOOM! insert. At the time of cataloging, the most expensive CJ Stroud card ever sold at auction is a KABOOM! insert. His hobby peak to date, a gold version of this vertical design limited to 10 prints in PSA 10 condition, while impressive does not quite compare to this top-of-the-line 1-of-1 . The example offered here is stamped on the front with a script “one-of-one” and stands among the most sought after CJ Stroud cards ever made.

This card has been authenticated and deemed to be in Mint condition, receiving a grade of 9 from Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA).

The PSA certificate number for this card is: 88120427.