Hello everyone-

I have received emails about an issue with a 2004 game used and autographed black Hines Ward jersey listed in Vintage Authentics current auction.

An observant forum member emailed me to ask if I would take a look at this item, which had been authenticated a5 by mears and had a letter from lou lampson grading it a 4.

Here is the photo:

Name: ward.jpg Views: 710 Size: 168.6 KB

If you look carefully, the stitching is over parts of the autograph, suggesting the numeral had been added to this jersey after the number was autographed. Apparently this is done with the game cuts sold on NFL Auctions.

The forum reader contacted mears about how a game cut jersey could get the a5 grade.

They responded on their website mearsonline.com, defending the a5 grade with this explanation.
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2004 Hines Ward Pittsburgh Steelers Home Jersey Current Vintage Authentics auction, A5
August 2 2006 at 11:27 PM Troy R. Kinunen (Login TroyKinunen)
A question was asked regarding Lot #245, the Hines Ward 2004 Steelers jersey offered in the current Vintage Authentics auction. It was brought to our attention that the number on the Ward jersey was autographed and then applied to the jersey. Upon re-inspection, we concur with that opinion. You can see the stitching is applied over parts of the autograph, meaning the number was signed then applied to the jersey.


Lot 245: Hines Ward 2004 Game Used & Autographed Jersey GU 4, GU grade per Lou Lampson


Vintage Authentics Catalog Description: Black home Pittsburgh Steelers Reebok jersey used by Pro Bowl wide receiver Hines Ward during his 2004 season and autographed by Ward on the back numeral in black sharpie. The jersey is appropriately strip-tagged in collar with "04-48" year-size ID and the outer tail houses the Reebok label with size 48 flag with untagged extra length added to the tail. All aspects are original and consistent. It earns a final grade of 4.

The Lou Lampson letter of authenticity is titled as “Hines Ward 2004 Game Used & Autographed Jersey GU 4”, and per the provided worksheet, 0 points was assigned for use. This information is gathered from the Vintage Authentics website.

The MEARS letters reads,

2004 Hines Ward Pittsburgh Steelers Home Jersey, Final Grade with respect to characteristics and game use: A5

Definition of A5: A5 Manufactures characteristics of the jersey have been compared to known authentic examples and match all criteria. Each piece is also evaluated on the degree of evident use and wear, which must be consistent with that of the player, sport, position, field of play, and duration of use. The degree of wear will be measured from minimal to heavy and the jersey cannot exhibit negative, missing, or incorrect manufacturers traits or use characteristics. When team or player provenance is lacking, wear can be measured, but not attributed directly to examined player. Without reasonable and verifiable provenance for post-1987 Hall of Fame or period star player jersey's, the A5 designation may still be assigned if the jersey possesses all the qualities and physical characteristics of a Major League jersey that was manufactured for player use or as an extra for a team or player, or one that may have been made available for retail sale or promotion. For jersey's assigned the A5 grade, use and wear will be described, but not verified.

The jersey still matches our definition of an A5, but we have included language stating the jersey was originally offered via NFL auctions.

The comment section reads, “… the autograph on the 8 was signed by Ward then applied to the jersey. This can be seen via the thread sewn over the jersey numeral. This was a common practice of jerseys offered via NFL auctions.
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That's an important thing for hobbyists to understand. This has come up before, but here we have a perfect example. It appears someone bought a game issued/game cut jersey from NFL Auctions, submitted it to the auction house and it got the A5 grade. Understand what you're buying when you're doing your research.

I sent an email to Steve Jensen at Vintage Authentics, who always is receptive to questions and comments. I pointed out that since the thread was over the autograph, the number was applied later. Either this was a real game used jersey that had been doctored, or it was a game cut NFL Auctions jersey in which case the listing title of "Game Used" did not apply.

Since there were issues here, Steve pulled the jersey from the auction.

There is a lot to learn here.
1) Do your own homework, as the forum reader did. Do not rely solely on the authenticators
2) Ask questions. Mears gave an explanation of what A5 means. It might not be the definition people perceive. Also, Steve Jensen was willing to look into the situation from his end and ultimately did a good thing by pulling it.
3) Know the meaning of the terms. There is a wide range covering the A5 grade, which include this item- one which never even saw a locker room.

As an aside, people could buy game cuts and submit them to auction houses which use mears, get the a5 grade (which is also given to game used modern items) and cash in on an unknowing public. In my opinion, game cut jerseys should never have the same grade as ones which are used in games but that's a whole other discussion.

Thanks for reading this long email and I'd be interested in people's responses.
Eric