If the Dallas Cowboys silence their critics and reach the postseason in 2014, we already know what the tickets to the games will look like. How? Because the team has already printed them.
As ESPN’s Darren Rovell revealed on Friday, Cowboys season ticket holders received a sheet of playoff tickets with their season ticket packages this week, including tickets to a potential NFC Championship Game in Dallas. Considering the Cowboys have not reached the playoffs since 2009 or played in the NFC Championship Game in almost 20 years, the pre-printing has been met with plenty of scrutiny.
However, there is reason to believe the Cowboys are simply the first team to do what many others will soon do. If you remember, the Green Bay Packers had trouble selling out a playoff game last season because of the bitter cold. The Cincinnati Bengals also had problems unloading their last-minute tickets. Getting the actual tickets in the hands of season ticket holders in advance could help prevent that.
“It’s operationally efficient for the teams and it’s convenient for the fan,” NFL senior vice president of club business development Brian Lafemina told ESPN.com. “There are times when teams don’t know if they are hosting a playoff game until a week before and doing this helps eliminate some of the friction that exists among the teams and fans. This dovetails nicely with our new policy. If a fan says they will pay if a game is played, the team can now charge that fan and the ticket is already in hand.”
Again, this is only laughable because it’s the Cowboys. If a team like the New England Patriots or Denver Broncos printed their playoff tickets in advance, it would be seen as cocky and not hilarious. Still, business-savvy thinkers like Patrick Ryan of The Ticket Experience in Houston believe it is a smart move.
“Doing this is smart because the team has less people to call after the team clinches because so many will be automatically charged,” Ryan said. “They then have less tickets to move during the public on sale because season seat holders will have already taken up so much of the allotted inventory.”
Look on the bright side, Cowboys fans — the team has provided you with a free fire starter if the outcome we all expect comes to fruition this season.
Photo: Twitter/Darren Rovell
