Dallas Cowboys brazenly mail season-ticket holders playoff tickets, too
The Dallas Cowboys have gone 8-8 each of the past three seasons, and the Tony Romo-led team hasn't reached the NFL playoffs in four years. So season ticket holders will probably be a bit surprised when they open their envelopes this week and find not just the usual preseason and regular-season slips, but also a sheet of playoff tickets — along with a ticket to the NFC Championship game, which hasn't featured the Cowboys since 1995.
ESPN Dallas notes that the seemingly cocky move may actually just be smart business; NFL teams struggled to sell out playoff games last season, because season-ticket holders were understandably wary of paying for a slate of additional tickets up front. The league changed its policy following that debacle, so now season-ticket holders can buy playoff tickets after a team clinches a certain game. On the Dallas tickets, fans merely have to pay for the additional tickets if the team reaches the playoffs, at which point the barcodes on the extras will activate. And, the team is betting that since seat holders already have the physical ticket, they're more likely to pay for it in the event of a playoff game, leaving fewer open tickets for the team to move.
Logical, this plan is. But sports fans are not logical, and sending out playoff tickets before a single preseason game — let alone a regular season one — has been played may prove to rub Cowboys fans the wrong way. You don't talk about the no-hitter in progress, and you don't touch the Stanley Cup until you've earned it. The Cowboys may have just jinxed themselves into a fourth 8-8 season.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Sarah Eberspacher is an associate editor at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked as a sports reporter at The Livingston County Daily Press & Argus and The Arizona Republic. She graduated from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.
-
Why is the German government on the verge of collapse?
Today's Big Question The faltering economy triggers a crisis
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
5 engrossing books to read this November
The Week Recommends Haruki Murakami's latest makes it stateside, and Niall Williams delivers a Christmas-time tearjerker
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
What are the risks of online sports betting?
The Explainer It's all fun and games until there are real financial stakes involved
By Becca Stanek, The Week US Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditions
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billion
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on record
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homes
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creature
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published