TV Ratings: ‘Thursday Night Football’ Drops With Snoozer Game
8:44 AM PDT 9/19/2014 by Michael O’Connell
Preliminary numbers fall 40 percent as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are scoreless until the fourth quarter
The second outing of CBS’ Thursday Night Football was bound to be smaller than last week — especially when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers entered the fourth quarter without having put any points on the board. Though the team did manage two scoring drives to avoid a shutout against the Atlanta Falcons, 14-56, many viewers had clearly turned the dial.
Preliminary ratings are down 40 percent from last week, with CBS and the NFL Net averaging a 3.3 rating among adults 18-49 in fast national returns. Last week’s game, which averaged an early 5.5 rating, went up to a 7.5 in the key demo once time zone adjustments were made.
Interest in the matchup was clearly already low, as pre-game coverage was also down 34 percent from comparable preliminary numbers last week. That coverage did take on the ongoing public debate over domestic abuse among NFL players and the league’s handling of it.
DHS seizes $21.6 million in fake NFL merchandise, arrests 50 involved
Ahead of the Super Bowl, federal officials announced a crackdown on counterfeit National Football League merchandise, revealing the seizure of more than $21.6 million in fake NFL merchandise, Thursday.
In an initiative called “Operation Team Player,” the feds targeted international shipments of counterfeit merchandise from abroad as it came into the United States, as well as warehouses, stores, online vendors, and street vendors selling counterfeit goods and tickets nationwide. The operation began in June.
“Our agents are committed to combating the criminal enterprises selling counterfeit products which undermine our economy, and take jobs away from Americans,” Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director John Sandweg said in a statement. “No good comes from counterfeiting American products regardless of whether they are jerseys, airbags or pharmaceuticals.
Ridgewood PRE-GAME CELEBRATION Super Sales and Special Game menu’s Mon, January 27, 2014 – Sun, February 02, 2014 Time: 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM All around Ridgewood, Ridgewood, NJ 07450
Come to Ridgewood and join in on the
Shop and Restaurant Super Specials:
We will start to list some of the businesses that will have Sale Days and Special Menu’s
BOOKENDS – 20% OFF on ALL Sport books
211 E. Ridgewood Ave.
LUCKY BRAND – 20% OFF REGULAR PRICE
67 E. Ridgewood Ave.
KATE SPADE – 10% DISCOUNT
202 E. Ridgewood Ave.
GYPSY WARRIOR BOUTIQUE – up to 80%
203 E. Ridgewood Ave. $10-$50
FEMMEBOT CLOTHING – 75%
203 E. Ridgewood Ave.
LaBOTTEGA Italian Gourmet – Super Bowl Specials
14 Oak St.- Nachos/Buffalo Chicken + more.
CHESTNUT DELI & CATERING-football shaped hero’s and lots of trays for your party.
25 Chestnut St.
THE OFFICE BEER BAR & GRILL
“Kids corner super bowl brunch” 2/2/14.
call for reservations 201-652-1070.
NE Laser Vein Institute offering 75 minute
Rhonda Allison’s uplift signature facial at $60 ($90 value) 201-445-4410.
Prices plummet for Super Bowl tickets
Updated: January 24, 2014, 6:35 PM ET
By Darren Rovell | ESPN.com
Two hungry fan bases and the wealth of the New York metropolitan area had some guessing that Super Bowl XLVIII would turn out to be the most expensive ticket in Super Bowl history.
However, judging from the reaction of the resale ticket market in the past 24 hours, it could turn out to be one of the least expensive.
On Friday, nine days before the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks meet at MetLife Stadium, the cheapest ticket to buy for the Super Bowl was $1,779 on NFL Ticket Exchange, the league’s official resale site. That’s $409 cheaper than it was on the site with this many days left last year and $809 cheaper than the year before.
Since the conference championship games ended, ticket prices have steadily plummeted. The get-in price on the NFL Ticket Exchange was $2,700 on Monday.
A sign of concern for brokers?
Julia Vander Ploeg, general manager of Ticketmaster’s resale business, which runs the NFL Ticket Exchange, said the number of tickets on the market has increased by 10 percent in the past 48 hours. And that’s before the NFL has even given the physical tickets to the majority of people the league is taking care of.
“What we have now is like a panicked stock market,” said James Kimmel, owner of Epic Seats, a ticket brokerage in Seattle. “The buyers have frozen, and the sellers are panicking.”
Ridgewood is huddling up for the big game
Wednesday January 22, 2014, 10:34 AM
BY DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News
New York might have the bright lights and attractions, but the biggest game in town will ultimately be played in New Jersey.
Many Garden State municipalities are jumping at the chance to capitalize on next month’s Super Bowl, which will take place in the heart of southern Bergen County at MetLife Stadium. And a little extra revenue for Main Street businesses isn’t the only name of this game – towns such as Ridgewood are also hoping to showcase their small-town charm and conjure up the residents’ Big Game spirit.
The Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce has organized a week-long Super Bowl pep rally, and the festivities include something for everyone, from the casual fan to the die-hard, from the novice to the Monday morning quarterback, from the gridiron rookie to its most aged veteran. And Jets and Giants fans don’t have to be green with envy or feel blue at home because their teams aren’t playing: Everyone’s invited to Ridgewood’s party.
Organizers have designated four major hubs where football action and activities will take place. The zone concept is something Ridgewood has used in the past, said Joan Groome, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce.
Ridgewood offering a run-up to Super Bowl
MONDAY JANUARY 20, 2014, 3:02 PM
BY CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD
Ridgewood will celebrate the arrival of the Super Bowl with waterside bonfires, chili cook-offs, live music and discounts galore — family-fun events designed to attract out-of-town visitors.
Ridgewood’s Pre-Game Celebration will run for a week before the big game and was organized by the Chamber of Commerce with involvement from various other village organizations.
The village had initially been singled out as a destination for Super Bowl attendees by the game’s local host committee, but “frankly, things didn’t work out,” according to Mayor Paul Aronsohn.
Ridgewood remained determined to do something to commemorate the Feb. 2 game in East Rutherford.
Obama: ‘I would not let my son play pro football’
January 19, 2014, 10:10 am
By Justin Sink
Read more: https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/195895-obama-danger-of-concussions-in-nfl-no-longer-a-secret#ixzz2qs3d8oMx
Follow us: @thehill on Twitter | TheHill on Facebook
President Obama said that he believed NFL players “know what they’re doing” and understood the impact that concussions could have on their long-term health in an interview with The New Yorker published on Sunday, adding that he would not let his son play pro football.
In August, the NFL agreed to a $765 million settlement in a lawsuit brought against the league by former players. The league did not admit any liability or that brain injuries were the result of playing football, but the money will be split among former players and medical researchers. A federal judge has not yet approved the deal.
Existing research has shown that repeated concussions can be associated with memory loss and behavioral changes. They’re also linked to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a progressive degenerative brain disease.
Super Bowl? The big game’s economic impact will be smaller than advertised
The New York Daily News recently ran an article with this assertion about the Super Bowl: “As many as 400,000 fans are expected to descend on the Meadowlands for the Super Bowl.”
Perhaps. But if they do, 320,000 of them will spend the evening standing around in the swamp. MetLife Stadium holds a mere 80,000.
This is typical of the hype surrounding the Super Bowl. Also typical is the claim that the big game will bring more than $500 million into the regional economy.
Not even close. That’s the conclusion of a study titled “Super Bowl or Super Hyperbole?”co-authored by economist Victor Matheson. The study runs for 32 data-packed pages, but the conclusion is simply stated: “The evidence indicates that at best the Super Bowl contributes approximately one-quarter of what the NFL promises.”
When I called Matheson at the College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts, he told me the NFL typically overestimates the value of the game to the local economy. As for those 400,000 fans, for example, “that’s beyond the capacity of the local hotels to host,” he said. “Most estimates are that about 100,000 people come to a city for the Super Bowl.” (Mulshine/Star-Ledger)
