Maybe the New England Patriots should have thought twice about retiring all Aaron Hernandez jerseys from their shelves. Right now, those jersey are extremely popular and people are dropping bucks to get their jersey of the now troubled tight end who could face life in prison.
The Patriots made Hernandez jerseys a hot commodity the minute they decided, not only to drop the star tight end from their roster, but when they retired the jersey from their shops. Currently on Ebay, there is a Hernandez jersey going for as much as $4,000. The next in line is worth $610 and it's an autographed Super Bowl jersey: very exclusive.
Not only was Hernandez one of their more popular players, but now that the thug side of his life is blown up all over the news, there are plenty of people out there willing to wear No. 81 on their backs. Some people are attracted to the lifestyle that landed Hernandez in jail and they will support Hernandez through thick and thin. They are willing to spend hundreds of dollars to have a product that was cleared from shelves as the Patriots are trying to cleanse the organization's name and distance themselves from Hernandez. However, what they didn't foresee or didn't care to consider (as far as business) was that this exclusivity would boom the jersey's popularity.
Instead, the Patriots allowed fans to return their Hernandez jerseys in return for one of equal value or less. Some fans were smart enough to take matters into their own hands and began selling No. 81 jerseys on Ebay. To their surprise, instead of landing a couple of bucks, they had enough money to buy themselves at least two replica jerseys of their favorite football team.
Fans were baffled, as reported by CBS Sports, one seller started his Ebay bid at $15 and auction ended at $289, a $274 profit. Take a look at how much the jerseys are going for now.
Lynn L'Heureux, a Patriots fan, supports the Patriots exiling Hernandez's jersey from shops. "I can't think of any reason why people would want it. They might think it will go up in value later on, and maybe it will, but I'm not interested," L'Heureux said. "I just don't want it in my possession. I want to use the money to buy a jersey that reflects my pride in the Patriots."
Maybe he'll go for a Tom Brady authentic jersey on sale for $249.50 on NFLshop.com. You can now get your own custom-made Patriots jersey for $299.95. You can possibly get away with putting No. 81 and Hernandez on the back and aim to make a profit of your own.