1965 Topps Football Cards

Topps really changed up the format of its football cards in 1965. It wasn't totally new for the company, however, as they used a design that already appeared on hockey cards from the year before - but football collectors likely never saw those. In the meantime, the 1965 Topps set is one of the classic sets of all time because of its off-beat design and the fact that it has one of the most iconic cards in the hobby.

First of all, the cards were made much larger. They measured the standard 2 ½ inches across, but were 4 11/16 inches tall. As a result, they are frequently called Tall Boys by hobbyists. While Topps never used that size for baseball, they used it for other sports as well as for non-sports Plak cards.

Card fronts featured a large player photo superimposed in front of a solid-colored background. The team city appears above the player, while his name and position appear in a container below his picture. A white border surrounds the card. Backs are split into two distinct parts. The right side features a cartoon about the player. The left side starts with a black box with a football-shaped holder for the card number, along with the player's name, position and team. Two lines of vital stats and a biography follow, along with a year/lifetime statistics box for certain players.

Following the same numbering scheme they used in all of Topps' AFL-only sets, every team is grouped together numerically and is alphabetized by home city. Within each team, players are grouped alphabetically by last name. There are also two checklist cards.

One of the puzzling things about the 1965 Topps set is the way 132 of the set's 176 cards are called single prints due to the way they were placed on their printing sheets. Oddly, that arrangement could also be considered to be 44 double prints, but they aren't listed as such in the price guides.

The most important card of the set is the rookie card of superstar quarterback Joe Namath. Other key rookies include Fred Biletnikoff, Willie Brown and Ben Davidson.

Cards from the 1965 Topps set are frequently found with centering issues, and their large size not only makes them more susceptible to damage, but also shows more print flaws.

Key 1965 Topps Football Cards:

• Joe Namath RC #122
• Fred Biletnikoff RC #133
• Checklist #176
• Jack Kemp #35
• Len Dawson #99

Best Match Items Ending First Newly-Listed Items First Price + Shipping: Lowest First Price + Shipping: Highest First

1965 Topps #119 Curley Johnson Fair-Good $6.95

1965 Topps #123 Dainard Paulson vg $5.95

1965 Topps #125 Sherman Plunkett two card lot $5.95

1965 Topps Boston Patriots Three Outstanding Graded Cards #13, #17, #22 $10.99

1965 TOPPS TALL BOY #69 GEORGE BLANDA OILERS EX MT NM $125.00

1965 TOPPS TALL BOY #35 JACK KEMP BUFFALO BILLS NM SP $150.00

1965 TOPPS TALL BOY #168 RON MIX CHARGERS EX MT NM $20.00

1965 #48 TOPPS GEORGE BLANDA HOUSTON OILERS EX MT NM $35.00