Times are tough for the post-Michael Vick Atlanta Falcons. The team is a mess, they were dumped by their coach in the middle of last season, and apparently their fan base is a bit…fickle. How else to explain this news item from the ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION?: the team is discounting tickets to their season opener against the Detroit Lions in order to sell their remaining 2,500 tickets and avoid a blackout.

The Falcons are cutting $10 off of the regular price of tickets, making them available for as low as $35 each. Which is kind of insane, when you think about it: $35 is suddenly a bargain to watch the Falcons and Lions slog through what is sure to be a 13-10 death march.

You would think that with the level of play that’s going to be taking place at that game, the Falcons would be thrilled to not have that game be televised in the Atlanta area. Why poison the waters for future sales by exposing the potential audience to the 2008 brand of Falcons Football?

My last experience with “discount” tickets at an NFL game was way back when the Raiders were still in Los Angeles, and they had a metal bleacher behind one end zone at the Coliseum. I think they were called the “Sun Deck” but we referred to them as the “Sun Stroke Deck” since $10 tickets meant more money for beers to drink while baking in the midday sun on metal bleachers. My friend chose to wear his Vikings jersey to the game despite the fact that it was the Raiders they were playing against. His funeral was a lovely affair.

Maybe your day won’t end on the wrong side of a baseball bat, but it’s not to say that going to a Falcons/Lions game can’t be exciting. It’s Matt Ryan’s first game as a pro! What an historic moment! Plus, Rudi Johnson’s Lions debut! How about that? Please?…