Aaron Rodgers Ex-Teammate Rakes In $5 Million by Selling Pokemon Cards in Just Seven Months

With immaculate planning, intricate designs, and a team to support them through it all, pro athletes often tend to find the perfect recipe for success post-retirement. It is, however, fairly common for athletes to follow the same troupe, doing business along similar lines.

But one ex-NFL linebacker has probably taken the least traveled path for pro athletes. The former Green Bay Packers LB and Aaron Rodgers formers teammate, Blake Martinez, announced his retirement back in November after spending seven seasons in the league. Even since his decision to call it quits, Martinez has garnered around $5 Million in just seven months, and that too by selling Pokemon cards.

Pokemon cards as a lucrative career

Martinez first acquired the card trading organization, Blake’s Breaks, during the early stages 0f the deadly COVID-19 pandemic. His first interaction with Pokemon cards was at the ripe age of six. Back then, Martinez recalled doing his chores and heading straight to a local Circle K store to buy the base Pokémon sets-the original ones. His hobby was, however, not sustainable as football took most of his time in his formative years.

Read More: Aaron Rodgers’ Former Teammate Quits NFL After Making a Fortune by Selling a Rare Pokémon Card

Despite turning into a household NFL name, the memories of Pokemon cards seemed to have found a place with Blake Martinez. His mother, however, informed him that the “cards had either been thrown away or given away,” prompting Martinez to reinvent his hobby. The only difference was that with Covid-19, the prices of these trading cards had skyrocketed.

Popular streamers and influencers from Twitch and other gaming platforms intrigued Blake, as he would often watch them doing box breaks. The excitement eventually got to him, and Martinez was ready to pursue his passion.

Ever since immersing himself completely into trading cards as a venture, Blake Martinez has made quite a fortune, mustering around $5 Million in just 7 months. Not to mention the fact that he earned as much as $675,000 from a single card, too.

Martinez compared his role within this venture to his role with an NFL team, “I used to be like the quarterback of the defense, I was calling plays,” said Martinez, via CNBC Make It. “When I started this business, it felt like running a team again.”

The reason behind retiring?

Blake Martinez has enjoyed somewhat of a successful career, having earned over $28 Million dollars over his playing days, and even leading the league in tackles back in 2017. But injuries soon became his bane. Back in 2021, Martinez found himself with a torn ACL and spent most of the season out on the bench. The following season, he ended up getting released by the New York Giants.

Martinez eventually found himself with the Las Vegas Raiders, but even that fit didn’t work as he announced his retirement the same season.

Martinez reflected on his unconventional career swap, citing injuries as the major reason for hanging up his boots, “Every single day when I wake up, my shoulder doesn’t hurt and my back doesn’t hurt anymore, When all that hurts are my fingers from opening, like, 1,000 packs of cards per day, I think, ‘I’m going to keep doing this.”

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