The Saints have sold tickets to all 73,000 Superdome seats for '11, the "sixth straight season the club has sold out," according to James Varney of the New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE. Saints VP/Communications Greg Bensel said that the sales figures are a "testament to the ongoing love affair between the Saints and Louisiana." Bensel in an e-mail said, "Our renewal rate was at 98 percent or higher, during a time when there was labor uncertainty front and center in the news." Even with fan support that "many teams envy, the ticket sales push has consumed a portion of the club's front office for most of the year." Bensel said that the Saints "first offered renewal packages to season-ticket holders in January, and after a February deadline for that process, offered that group of fans first dibs on additional tickets or upgrades." By April, the team "turned to its waiting list, and by last week had booked all 73,000 seats." Bensel noted that "unlike some other franchises where talk of layoffs and furloughs has been open, Saints staffers have received no such ominous messages" (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 5/22).
LIONS INSTITUTE FURLOUGHS: In Detroit, Dave Birkett reports the Lions "began two-week furloughs" last month with "football on hiatus indefinitely." Several NFL teams "have instituted one form of pay cut or another during the lockout." The Cardinals “issued one-week furloughs for non-contract employees,” while the Dolphins and Packers are "among the teams to implement or schedule pay cuts for assistant coaches" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 5/24).
