CSNBAYAREA.com's Paul Gutierrez noted the Raiders "have agreed" to the NFL's new 85% threshold option to televise games in their local market. The Raiders "merely" have to sell 85% of non-premium tickets to home games to avoid a blackout. The Oakland Coliseum's capacity of 63,132 is "the second-smallest in the NFL." The Raiders have "had 57 televised home games and 79 blackouts the past 17 seasons" (CSNBAYAREA.com, 8/8).
MEET AND GREET: In Akron, Nate Ulrich notes prospective Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam III "met with first-time season-ticket holders Wednesday in the South Club VIP Lounge before the team's Family Night practice at Cleveland Browns Stadium." Haslam stood beside Browns GM Tom Heckert and "watched practice from the field Wednesday night as 19,412 fans looked on from the stands." Haslam also "chatted with Browns President Mike Holmgren in the bowels of the stadium before the practice." Before arriving at the stadium, Haslam "worked at the Browns' headquarters in Berea, meeting with staff members on the business side." Once Haslam is officially in charge, he "eventually plans to give the stadium he visited on Wednesday a makeover." He said, "We're gonna enhance the stadium, make it a better place for the fans" (AKRON BEACON JOURNAL, 8/9).
THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX: CSNBAYAREA.com's Matt Maiocco noted in the 49ers in the past "have distributed season tickets like every other team in every other sport," but this year the team "tried something different." 49ers CEO Jed York wrote on Twitter that he "wanted to hear from 49ers season-ticket holders about their 'box opening experience.'" Over the past week, the 49ers "have issued a playbook of its own to season-ticket holders." It includes "a black binder 'playbook' with a letter from [coach Jim] Harbaugh, a fan guide for creating a home-field advantage and individual game tickets that contain a different theme." It also included a 10-minute DVD from NFL Films that documents the 49ers' victory over the Saints in the NFC divisional playoff. As of Tuesday, "not all season-ticket holders had received the 'playbook.'" York "promised all remaining binders were sent via priority mail and scheduled to arrive" today (CSNBAYAREA.com, 8/8).
AN APPLE A DAY: In San Antonio, Tom Orsborn notes Cowboys coach Jason Garrett is "overseeing the club's digital conversion from paper playbooks to iPads." Some of the team's older assistant coaches "didn't embrace the change implemented by Global Apptitude, a software company in Baltimore that engineered a football-specific application that combines print and video." The Cowboys "purchased 144 iPads." The Ravens began the trend in '11, and since then, seven other NFL teams "have contracted with Global Apptitude," including the Cowboys, Panthers, Lions, Colts, Rams, Seahawks and Redskins (SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 8/9).
