Vintage 1894 football card found in farmhouse; Player resembles Peyton Manning

The oldest known football card ever seen was found by a man cleaning out a Kentwood, Mich. farmhouse and headed to the trash until he decided to take it to a sports card dealer.

Good thing.  The vintage 1894 card— considered the "Holy Grail" of football cards— bears the likeness of Harvard's John Dunlop and was appraised at a value of  $10,000.

The card is labeled "Anonymous" because it doesn't bear Dunlop's name but the sepia-toned headshot does have a strange resemblance to Peyton Manning.

Could it be?  It feels like that whole saga between the Indianapolis Colts quarterback and team owner Jim Irsay started about 118 years ago too.

                                                             

The unidentified man found the rare card— along with 35 other cards of mostly boxers including one of the all-time greats John Sullivan— in an old notebook while emptying out the home after a death in the family.

Experts said the vintage card was issued by the Mayo Tobacco Works of Richmond, Virginia and is part  of a set considered to be the first and rarest collection of football cards ever printed.

All of the cards will be submitted for auction.

Manning's status is still in the air.