Mac Jones’ rookie cards gained a lot of early attention in the football card hobby, and he became the most sought-after 2021 NFL rookie.
Excluding parallels, Jones’ most valuable and, in my opinion, his best rookie card is his 2021 Panini National Treasures Rookie Patch Autograph card.
There are some great alternatives as well, with varying scarcity and values; I’ve covered all the top picks below.
Table of Contents
Quick Summary - Top Picks
In a hurry? Here’s a quick look at my top picks for Mac Jones rookie card, for different budgets:
For Low Budget
- 2021 Panini Prizm #336
- 2021 Donruss Optic #206
For Mid Budget
For High Budget
The Best Mac Jones Rookie Cards
Although he has a couple of earlier releases, Mac Jones’ official rookie cards are found in the 2021 Panini football card sets; Only Panini had the license for his NFL cards.
Here’s an in-depth look at the 11 best Mac Jones rookies:
2021 Panini Prizm Mac Jones #336
As you’d probably expect, the 2021 Panini Prizm Mac Jones rookie card is one of his most popular first-year football cards.
Although the base card is far from a rare or premium card, it’s generally the mainstream rookie of choice for collectors.
Prizm cards are known for having a large array of parallels, which are tougher to get hold of, and offer collectors more valuable options.
The parallels vary in rarity, so there are lots of price entry points for investors; The lowest-numbered and rarest parallels are among Mac’s best and most valuable rookie cards.
In 2022, a PSA 8 graded copy of the Gold Vinyl Prizm (/5) sold for $15.6k, making it one of his most expensive unsigned rookie cards.
2021 Panini Donruss Optic Mac Jones #206
An annual favorite among football card collectors, the Donruss Optic Rated Rookie card takes its design from the standard Donruss Rated Rookie line, and adds the optichrome finish.
The Rated Rookie design has become popular in the hobby, so the 2021 Donruss Optic Rated Rookie Mac Jones rookie card is highly sought-after.
The base card isn’t hard to get hold of, and it’s not high-value, but the parallels are a tougher chase, and more valuable options.
2021 Panini Absolute Kaboom! Mac Jones #K44
A shiny, bold and exciting looking card, the Kaboom! inserts are always a popular release.
This one is out of reach for many collectors, but for me, Mac Jones’ 2021 Kaboom card is his best unsigned rookie card.
The short print cards weren’t easy to pack at the time of release, and it’s hard to come across them now, but they’re very popular, and that makes them expensive to buy.
This one does have Gold (/10) and Green (1-of-1) parallel versions; A PSA 10 graded copy of the Gold parallel sold for $57.6k, back in 2022, which was a record sales price for a Mac Jones rookie.
2021 Donruss Optic Downtown! Mac Jones #DT-40
Like the Kaboom card, the Downtown inserts are also very valuable and hard to buy.
This is one of my favorite first-year Mac Jones cards, and the base version is one of the most valuable unsigned Jones rookies; A copy of the base version has sold for as much as $4.1k before, graded BGS 10.
The unique design of Downtown cards have proven to be very popular. The 2021 Donruss Optic Downtown Mac Jones rookie includes more than one nod to New England.
It’s a limited card, typically falling at a rate of one per case, so it generally headlines the Donruss Optic set in terms of value.
There are a handful of low-numbered parallels for this one as well, like the Gold parallel (/10) which sold for $9.9k, back in 2022, graded PSA 10.
2020 Panini Select XRC Redemption Mac Jones #405
Panini Select NFL is always a popular option among collectors for football rookies, especially with their extended rookie cards (XRC).
An earlier release, the 2020 set includes Jones as one of the 2021 NFL Draft picks.
He’s not included in the autographed list, but the value of this unsigned Mac Jones rookie card is still relatively high.
There are also parallel versions, and a PSA 10 graded copy of the Gold Prizm parallel (/10) sold for $36k in 2022, which makes it one of this most expensive rookie cards to buy.
2021 Panini Mosaic Mac Jones #306
Released a year after the debut Mosaic set, 2021 Panini Mosaic is another mainstream set which includes some top Mac Jones rookie card options.
The base version is a good chrome option, which is mainstream and low value.
The Prizm-esque set has a plethora of parallels, which add color and varying layers of rarity; Some of the low-numbered parallels hold big value.
2021 Panini Certified Mac Jones #106
The limited number of base 2021 Panini Certified Mac Jones rookie cards make it more appealing to football card collectors and investors.
The base card itself is limited to just 399 copies, but it’s not expensive to buy; I personally think it’s one of the best entry-level Mac Jones rookies, because of the serial-numbering.
There are also numerous parallels, which are lower-numbered, and add value.
The Top Mac Jones Autographed Rookie Cards
2021 Panini Contenders Optic Autograph Mac Jones #109
Following the traditional, and popular, rookie ticket card design, the 2021 Panini Contenders Optic set includes this Mac Jones autographed rookie card.
It’s a premium and highly valuable Jones rookie card option, and in my opinion, one of the Mac Jones rookies to have.
The base version is very much affordable for most collectors, despite featuring the hard-signed autograph.
It’s accompanied by some even more valuable parallels; The 1-of-1 Gold Vinyl Prizm parallel for this one sold for $26.4k in 2022, graded PSA 8.
There’s also an image variation version, which has its own set of parallels.
2021 Panini Black Mac Jones Rookie Patch Autograph #205
While there are multiple sets which include patch Mac Jones rookie cards with a sticker autograph, this Panini Black card stands out with its dark color scheme and silver signature ink, but, most notably, the larger patch swatch.
This one is also limited and numbered to only 149 base copies.
It’s an option with premium features, but at a fraction of the price of his National Treasures and Flawless RPA cards, so it offers a good alternative to collectors with a lower budget.
There are a handful of lower-numbered parallels for this one as well.
2021 Panini Flawless Rookie Patch Autograph Mac Jones #RPA-MJO
As one of the premier and most high-end football card brands, Panini Flawless offers collectors this super-premium Mac Jones rookie patch autograph card in the 2021 set, which I think is his best card from the release, among multiple options.
It features a classy design, with a relic patch and on-card signature and serial-numbering to just 25 copies, for the base version.
It doesn’t quite hold the same weight as the National Treasures RPA, despite it being lower-numbered, but I think it offers a great alternative, if you can get hold of one.
There are numerous lower-numbered parallel versions, which add some slight changes, including the coveted 1-of-1 Platinum NFL Shield version.
2021 Panini National Treasures Rookie Patch Autograph Mac Jones #161
For me, the best and most valuable Mac Jones rookie card is his 2021 Panini National Treasures Rookie Patch Autograph card.
It’s also his most valuable first-year card, which is unsurprising for football players of his era.
National Treasures RPAs are so sought-after because they tick all the boxes: A high-quality finish to the card, a large patch piece, on-card signature and serial numbering.
It’s a very valuable card, for collectors with a big budget; A BGS 9 graded copy of the base card has sold for as much as $31.2k before.
The base version is limited to 99 numbered copies, and the limited parallel options add further rarity and value.
When Was Mac Jones’ Rookie Season?
Mac Jones’ rookie season was the 2021 season – In the 2021 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots selected Jones as the 15th overall pick.
What Is The Most Valuable Mac Jones Rookie Card?
The 2021 Panini National Treasures RPA rookie card (#162) is the most valuable Mac Jones rookie card.
Although there are other RPA Jones rookies, the National Treasures brand prestige gives this one the edge. The on-card signature and jumbo patch swatch also have big appeal, plus it’s numbered to just 99 copies.
Which Year's Releases Are Considered To Be Mac Jones’ Rookie Cards?
Generally, football card collectors consider the 2021 Panini cards to be Mac Jones’ rookie cards. He does, however, have a couple of earlier releases, like the 2017 Upper Deck USA Football Mac Jones #39 card, for example.
Mac Jones: A Background
Mac Jones quickly established himself as one of the top young Quarterbacks in the NFL, after being selected by the New England Patriots in the 2021 Draft.
Jones was considered one of the top names in the 2021 rookie class, in a strong list containing the likes of Ja’Marr Chase, Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson.
His rookie season was strong, with Jones being named to the 2021 PFWA All-Rookie Team and finishing second, behind Ja’Marr Chase, in the Offensive Rookie of the Year award.
After his early success, Mac Jones had comparisons to big names like Tom Brady, and while he has a lot to do to fill those shoes, he’s someone that many NFL fans have high hopes for.
