David Wallace/The Republic
The 2018 NFL Draft featured a number of highly-touted quarterbacks, including Josh Rosen, who was selected by the Cardinals with the 10th overall pick. He ended up being a bust, but that didn’t stop someone from spending over $25,000 to secure one of his rookie cards.
The Browns scooped up Baker Mayfield with the first overall pick in the draft in 2018. He ended up being one of five quarterbacks who heard their name called in the first round, which the Ravens capped off by landing an absolute steal in the form of Lamar Jackson.
The former Louisville QB has cemented himself as the most talented member of a group that also included Sam Darnold and Josh Allen, who have also done pretty well for themselves. The former helped the Seahawks win a Super Bowl last season, while the latter injected new life into the Bills while silencing the haters who thought Buffalo picked the wrong Josh on draft night.
The one that turned out to be the wrong one in hindsight was Josh Rosen, the UCLA product who the Cardinals got with the 10th pick. He ended up being a bust, as he went 3-10 as a starter during his first and only season with Arizona, failed to turn things around after being traded to the Dolphins the following year, and saw his career come to a quiet end after similarly ill-fated stints with five other teams.
As a result, you might not think there’s a huge market for his rookie cards, but that was not the case with one that recently hit the auction block.
Someone dropped more than $25,000 on a Josh Rosen rookie card, but it’s not as crazy as it sounds
Rosen appeared in 24 games while throwing 12 touchdowns and 21 interceptions, which is not the kind of résumé you’d associate with someone whose rookie card is capable of fetching two semesters’ worth of tuition at his alma mater.
However, that’s the situation that unfolded at a Fanatics auction where his 2018 Panini Green “Kaboom” rookie card sparked a bidding war where 95 offers ultimately drove the price up to a whopping $26,400.
💸 RECORD SALE 💸
We just sold this Josh Rosen card at auction for $26,400.
This marks a new all-time record price for any Josh Rosen card and is 5x higher than the previous record. pic.twitter.com/xdzu29Tb3c
— Fanatics Collect (@FanaticsCollect) February 22, 2026
That somewhat unsurprisingly shattered the record for a Rosen card by fivefold, and based on the reactions online, the prevailing sentiment among people who heard about the sale was one simple word: Why?
All signs point to the buyer attempting to track down all 50 of the green cards that were released as part of the 2018 Kaboom set, as that color meant they were one-of-one (Panini also released 10 gold versions of each player, along with silver that serve as the common base).
One of his fellow collectors says the Rosen acquisition marked the halfway point in that quest, and if they were willing to drop that much on him, it seems safe to assume they’ll be shelling out even more on bigger names in their attempt to complete the collection.