Card of the Day: 1971 Topps #156 Terry Bradshaw RC
Terry Bradshaw's rookie card from the 1971 Topps set is one of the great vintage football rarities — a Hall of Fame quarterback's first card, in a set so hard to find well-centered that just three copies have ever reached a PSA 10. For Steelers collectors and vintage football set-builders alike, #156 is the anchor of the entire 1971 checklist.
The Card
Bradshaw was the first overall pick of the 1970 NFL Draft out of Louisiana Tech, and his 1971 Topps rookie arrived right as the Steelers dynasty was taking shape. Over 14 seasons in Pittsburgh, he delivered four Super Bowl titles (IX, X, XIII, XIV), took home Super Bowl MVP honors twice (XIII and XIV), won the NFL MVP award in 1978, and finished his career with 27,989 passing yards and 212 touchdown passes before his 1989 Pro Football Hall of Fame induction.
That résumé — a four-ring quarterback whose entire career was spent in one city — is what makes his rookie card a cornerstone for two different kinds of collectors: Steelers team collectors who treat it as the franchise's foundational card, and vintage football set-builders who need it to complete the 1971 release.
The Condition Challenge
1971 Topps football is one of the toughest vintage football sets to find well-centered — and the census proves it. Of 6,282 graded copies of Bradshaw's rookie, just 3 have reached GEM-MT 10, a gem rate of 0.05%. Even MINT 9 is nearly as scarce at just 21 copies. The population is stacked heavily toward 8s and below: 458 cards sit at NM-MT 8, with the remaining thousands spread across the lower grades.
PSA Population Report
| PSA Grade | Population | Value |
|---|---|---|
| GEM-MT 10 | 3 | — |
| MINT 9 | 21 | $23,000 |
| NM-MT 8 | 458 | $2,500 |
| Total Graded (All Grades) | 6,282 | — |
* Population data as of August 4, 2026. PSA population counts are dynamic and increase as more cards are submitted for grading.
Where the Value Lives
The price ladder tells the scarcity story. On the PSA Price Guide, a NM-MT 8 runs $2,500, and a MINT 9 jumps to $23,000 — nearly ten times the price of an 8. The GEM-MT 10 carries no listed guide value at all, which is what happens when a population of three leaves the market with essentially no comps to anchor on. For most collectors, the realistic play is the 8: a genuine Hall of Fame rookie from a condition-challenged vintage set at a five-figure-plus ceiling for the grades above it.
For the quarterback of the greatest dynasty in NFL history, the 1971 Topps Bradshaw is a rookie card with a brutal gem rate, a nearly unreachable top — and a condition story that makes every well-centered copy matter.
