Why It's Time for the NFL's Blackout Policy to Change

As football fans across America settled in for an early Christmas gift of NFL action Saturday supporters of the Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals were left in the dark, as the Broncos-Bills and Cardinals-Bengals games were blacked out in local markets per the NFL's policy.

This policy states, simply put, that if a game is not sold out within 72 hours of kickoff it will be "blacked out," and fans within 75 miles of the home team's stadium will be unable to view the game on local television.

The policy was established in 1973 to spur ticket sales and help fill stadiums, and in fact before 1973 all games were blacked out in local markets, but with the Bengals facing their sixth blackout this season United States Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) called for an end to what he called a "failed" policy.

Senator Martin said:

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"The NFL's blackout policy is unnecessary. The NFL is poised to earn record profits while the Cincinnati taxpayers who built the stadium will be watching reruns rather than touchdown runs. The rule is an outdated relic that doesn't serve the NFL or the fans."

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The National Football League, as expected, came out in defense of the policy, with spokesman Brian McCarthy stating:

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"The blackout policy is very important in supporting NFL stadiums and the ability of NFL clubs to sell tickets; keeping our games attractive as television programming with large crowds; and ensuring that we can continue to keep our games on free TV. Playing in full stadiums with thousands of fans is an important part of what makes NFL football an exciting and special entertainment event, both live and on television. We have a limited number of games and do not want to erode the incentive to buy tickets. Every market receives more than 100 NFL games on free TV every year, regardless of the blackout policy."

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However, the fact remains that the NFL is making money hand over fist, while the rest of America struggles through a very sluggish economy. Many fans, especially in "blue-collar" cities such as Buffalo that have been hit especially hard by these tough financial times, simply cannot afford to fork over $100 or more per person for tickets, parking, concessions and the like, or $200-plus for Sunday Ticket on DirecTV. And it's these fans, the "regular Joes" who are being punished by a policy that has outlived any realistic usefulness it may have once had.

C'mon Commissioner Goodell. It's Christmas. Grow that heart three sizes, abolish or revise the blackout policy in the offseason and give the fans in Whoville back their football.