Autograph Authentication Report
2024 Topps Chrome All-Etch Autographs · #AEA-BY
Findings
Signature comparison
This card. The signature as cropped from the slab photo (front).
Below, the known examples Crown compared it with. Examples with stronger proof (signed in front of staff, or certified by an independent authenticator) carry the most weight.
Feature by feature
| Feature | This card | Known examples | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall form and proportions | Wide, flat signature: angular 'B' lead-in, large horizontal oval, long horizontal stroke into a crossed upright, and a small detached tick below right. Height to width 0.298. | R5, R7 and R8 show the same B-loop, horizontal run and cross with tick. R1, R2 and R6 are fuller versions with a more developed hash and number. Reference height to width runs 0.293 to 0.485. | Match |
| Slant and baseline | Upright strokes lean strongly (-16.5°). The baseline is close to flat (-4.8°). | Upright slant -15.6° to -5.8°. Writing angle -1.8° to 27.9°, with college-era photo signatures rising more steeply. | Natural variation |
| Letter construction ('B' and number/hash) | The 'B' is reduced to a sharp zig-zag top with one large sweeping oval for the bowl. The hash/number is reduced to a single crossing upright plus a separate small tick. | R7 and R5 show the same large single-oval 'B' bowl, with the crossing done as two uprights. R8 is similarly compressed. R1, R2 and R6 show more of the number. Simplifying with time and speed is typical. | Natural variation |
| Connecting strokes | The oval closes and flows straight into the long horizontal that runs to the crossbar, in one continuous movement. | The same oval-to-horizontal connection appears in R5, R6, R7 and R8. | Match |
| Starting and ending strokes | Starts with a quick leftward hooked entry stroke. The horizontal ends in a tapered exit. The final tick is a short separate dab. | R5, R7 and R8 have similar hooked entries and a small detached terminal mark (the number remnant). | Match |
| Line quality and speed | Smooth, confident curves with no visible tremor, hesitation or patching at this resolution. Stroke thickness variation is 0.547. | All references are fast and fluid. Stroke thickness variation runs 0.321 to 0.58. | Match |
| Pen pressure pattern | Blue marker on chrome, with some thinning on the fast horizontal and slight broadening on the curves. | Similar marker behaviour on glossy cards (R1, R2, R6). Fabric (R3) and small stickers (R4) are not directly comparable. | Natural variation |
| Spacing | The B-loop takes up most of the width, the cross sits at the right end, and the tick sits low and right. | Same arrangement in R5, R7 and R8. | Match |
| Flourishes and underlines | No separate underline. The large lower oval works as the underline/flourish. | The same oval-as-underline appears throughout the references. | Match |
| Placement and size | Sits in the clear signing window above the 'TOPPS CERTIFIED AUTOGRAPH ISSUE' line, sized to the window. | On-card manufacturer autos (R4, R7, R8) are similarly fitted to the signing area. Placement does not look like a facsimile layout. | Match |
| Reproduction signs | No halftone or dot pattern is visible. Ink density varies naturally. Whether the ink sits on or under the chrome surface cannot be judged from the photo. | Not applicable. | Not assessable |
Measurements
Software traced the ink and measured it against the known examples. The shaded band is the signer's normal range across those examples; the gold marker is this card.
| Feature | This card | Known examples | Normal range | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slant of upright strokes | -16.5° | -15.6–-5.8° | In range | |
| Overall writing angle | -4.8° | -1.8–27.9° | In range | |
| Height to width | 0.298 | 0.293–0.485 | In range | |
| Ink travel per unit width | 3.94× | 3.34–4.88× | In range | |
| Stroke thickness variation | 0.547 | 0.321–0.58 | In range | |
| Closed loops | 4 | 3.0–22.0 | In range | |
| Separate strokes | 8 | 2.0–11.0 | In range |
Our software measured seven features of this signature and compared them with six authenticated or certified Bryce Young signatures. All seven fall within his normal range: slant, overall angle, height-to-width shape, ink travel, stroke thickness variation, loop count and number of separate strokes. The slant and overall angle sit near the edge of what his references show, but still within the variation his own signatures display, and photo angle and pen type easily account for that. Taken together, the numbers support the visual finding that this signature is consistent with Bryce Young's genuine autographs. On their own, though, they do not prove the ink is live.
Examiner notes
Ours is a 2024 Topps Chrome All-Etch on-card autograph from Young's Carolina Panthers period, when he wore #9. Most references are earlier. R1, R2 and R4 are 2022 Bowman University products and R3, R5 and R6 are college or Heisman-era items, so all six date to roughly 2021–2022 at Alabama. R7 (Wild Card) and R8 (Leaf Memories) are probably 2023 rookie-period autographs. Across these, the signature moves from a fuller 'B' with a clear stylized '#9' toward a faster, abbreviated form. That form is a zig-zag lead-in, a large oval lower loop, a long horizontal run into one crossed upright, and a small detached tick. Ours sits at the abbreviated end of that progression, closest to R5, R7 and R8.
How Crown authenticates autographs: the signature is compared with known examples gathered from Crown's own authenticated cards, independent authenticators and public listings, measured by software, examined by an AI forensic model, and signed off by Crown Grading staff. The decision above is Crown's.
