Ticket Test Starts Today

The Vikings have impressed national analysts with their offseason moves, but they will find out today just how interested fans are in purchasing tickets.

The Vikings’ first test of the 2008 season will come today. No, they don’t have a scrimmage or an organized team activity planned. Tickets for the 2008 season go on sale at 9 a.m. for individual games, as well as the two-game mini-pack required for the Green Bay game (for each Packers ticket fans buy, they need to buy a corresponding number of tickets for the preseason home opener against Seattle).

Last season, the Vikings had considerable difficulty keeping their consecutive-games sellout streak alive. At one time or another, the local FOX, CBS and NBC affiliates all had to chip in financially to make sure all home games were televised. Since then, Adrian Peterson has stepped up as the NFL’s “Next Big Thing” and the defense looks to be vastly improved with the addition of DE Jared Allen, who promises to bring a pass rush that has been sorely lacking the last couple of years.

For those interested, tickets officially go on sale at 9 a.m. at the Metrodome’s Gate B in Minneapolis. They will get the first crack at the available tickets. For those unable to show up in person, tickets will become available online at 10 a.m. Central Time through Midwest Ticketmaster. Tickets can be ordered by calling 651-989-5151 or visiting the Ticketmaster website.

The Vikings have made a lot of changes over the last 16 months to put a product on the field that will compete for a berth in the Super Bowl. They have made believers of a lot of the national analysts. In a tight economy, will that translate with fans?

We’ll find out today. Typically, when there is a buzz surrounding a Minnesota sports team, tickets go in a hurry. The Vikings will be a test of that. Spoiler Alert! Bandwagon jumpers may find themselves disappointed.

WEDNESDAY NOTES

It sounds like former Viking Brad Johnson’s days with Dallas may be numbered. Word out of the Metroplex is that Jerry Jones is considering shipping a seventh-round pick to Tampa Bay for veteran Chris Simms. Johnson, who turns 40 in September, played sparingly behind starter Tony Romo last year and there are some concerns that, if needed for a long stretch, Johnson may no longer be able to hold up – much less get the deep ball to Terrell Owens.

With veteran Cedric Benson having been shown the door and the running game expected to be headed up by untested rookie Matt Forte, the Bears are said to be one of the teams potentially interested in a trade with the Raiders for running back LaMont Jordan. With the re-signing of Justin Fargas and the drafting of Darren McFadden, Jordan looks to be the odd man-out in Oakland.

The NFL is taking the Spygate scandal seriously. The league announced that the NFL has hired Col. Jeffrey Miller, the former state police chief for Pennsylvania, as its newly created director of strategic security. His job will entail all things security related in the NFL’s 32 stadiums – said to range between rowdy fan behavior to the stealing of coaching signals.