Second deadline extension possible for Vikings

The NFL gave the Vikings a deadline of 3:30 p.m. today to sell their remaining 8,000 tickets for Sunday's playoff game against Philadelphia, but a ruling by the league in a different market might indicate the Vikings could get more time to avoid a TV blackout.

The NFL on Thursday granted Arizona a second 24-hour extension to sell its remaining tickets for their Saturday playoff game against Atlanta.

The Cardinals, like the Vikings, were given a 24-hour extension to sell enough tickets to avoid a blackout. The deadline for the Cardinals was Thursday afternoon, but with the team reportedly still holding 3,700 tickets, the NFL granted another 24-hour extension, until 2:30 p.m. today.

That appears to be good news for the Vikings. But Steve LaCroix, vice president of sales and marketing, said the Vikings can't assume they also will be granted another extension.

LaCroix said Thursday that he was "cautiously optimistic" the Vikings would sell their remaining tickets, but the team faces an uphill climb to avoid its first blackout since the 1997 regular-season finale.

LaCroix said many of the remaining tickets are prime seats, ranging from $80 to $180. LaCroix said the Vikings ticket office is working "24/7" and the team is contacting season-ticket holders who have not purchased tickets.

LaCroix said the team has had conversations with various companies about purchasing a bulk amount of tickets, but the response hasn't been favorable. The Vikings needed corporate help to reach a sellout eight times over the past two seasons.

"They are in the same boat as everybody else," LaCroix said. "It's the start of a new quarter and a very tough economic and financial environment. So really there is no one that is going to come in and save the day at this point. When you have this many seats available, it ends up being a pretty expensive proposition."

The Vikings began the week with 20,000 tickets remaining because only 55 percent of the team's 55,000 season-ticket holders purchased playoff tickets. The NFL requires the Vikings to sell 62,000 tickets to consider the game sold out.

A playoff game has not been blacked out in a local market since Miami played host to Baltimore in 2002.

The blackout would include KMSP viewers and also various secondary markets that include Alexandria, Redwood Falls, Austin, Mankato, Rochester and Mason City, Iowa. DirecTV subscribers in those areas also would not get the game.

"DirecTV is cut off, so you can't go to your local sports bar," LaCroix said. "If you don't get it at home, you can't go down the street to whatever sports bar it is to watch the game. It's across the board."