THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 17, 1995 TAG: 9509170147
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: JIM DUCIBELLA
LENGTH: Long : 118 lines
Think Al Davis didn't know what he was doing when he moved his Raiders back to Oakland? Think again.
The Raiders' average seat price is $51, highest this season in the NFL, and $11 more than the average ticket of the next-highest team, the Eagles.
Raiders tickets prices increased 62.8 percent over last season. League-wide, ticket prices increased 9.3 percent to an average of $33.39.
The price of Raiders tickets surpass the most expensive average prices last season for NBA seats (the Knicks, $43.90) and NHL seats (the Blues, $42.21).
Nine teams held the line this year, including the Jets, whose $25 average is the lowest in the NFL for the second straight year.
Expansion football doesn't mean lower prices, either. The Panthers ($37.92) and the Jaguars ($35) are in the league's top 10 for highest average prices.
The full list, with teams listed in order from highest to lowest:
1, Raiders - $51; 2, Eagles - $40; 3, 49ers - $39.75; 4, Cowboys - $38.25; 5, Chargers - $37.96; 6, Panthers - $37.92; 7, Redskins - $35.70; 8, Giants - $35.59; 9, Bears - $35.10; 10, Jaguars - $35.
11, Patriots - $34.22; 12, Vikings - $33.94; 13, Rams - $33.61; 14, Bills - $33.46; 15, Broncos - $33.06; 16, Browns - $32.61; 17, Dolphins - $32.56; 18, Falcons - $32.23; 19, Saints - $32.17; 20, Bengals - $31.99.
21, Cardinals - $31.97; 22, Oilers - $31.32; 23, Chiefs - $31.22; 24, Steelers - $30.71; 25, Buccaneers - $29.73; 26, Lions - $28.54; 27, Colts - $28.18; 28, Seahawks - $28; 29, Packers - $26.13; 30, Jets - $25
POP QUIZ: What is ``Neon'' Deion ``Prime Time'' Sanders' real middle name?
(A) Lavelle. (B) Lamar. (C) Luwynn. (D) LaBradford.
(Answer later.)
HUDDLING WITH ... Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Ernest Givins
You've caught just three passes for 30 yards in the Jaguars' first two games, far less than anyone thought you would do when you signed on. Last week you even shared playing time with a couple other guys, something I bet you never thought you would do.
I didn't come down here to Jacksonville to stand around and not do anything. I came down to Jacksonville to help this organization win and help myself put up the numbers that will get me in the Hall of Fame. That's what I came down here for. I'm not here to sit on the bench and watch someone else do it.
Jags' coach Tom Coughlin wasn't happy with the fact that you brought your complaints over playing time to the media before discussing them with him. You replied by saying you had the same complaint about his handling of your playing time.
I had no indication whatsoever. If he had told me about it, oh yeah, I would have taken it in stride like a professional. But if you don't tell me something and then start doing it to me, it's like, `OK, we're upset with you, we don't want you there,' that type of thing. It's like a slap in my face.
Have you patched up your differences?
We spoke, but it wasn't anything where you really want to say, `OK, wow, everything is great.' I told him I was tired of getting my butt whipped every week, and I'm sure a lot of guys in this locker room are tired of getting their butts whipped every week. I don't want to win next year, I don't want to win next week, I want to win now.
You mentioned the Hall of Fame. In Houston, you caught 542 passes in nine seasons and went to two Pro Bowls. You've stated you think you need to catch 45 passes a year for the next two seasons to make it.
With the catches I got in Houston, that would put me over 600. That should be enough.
WHEN THE WHEELS FALL OFF: You can't blame Derrick Moore for wondering whether the Carolina Panthers have much confidence in him as their new starting halfback. Two games into the regular season, Moore already is the fourth player coach Dom Capers has tried at that spot. That's a fact open to anyone who drives along one of Charlotte's busiest streets.
Last summer, the Panthers erected a billboard along a road bordered by dozens of car dealerships. It pictures Barry Foster, Derrick Lassic and Randy Baldwin and proclaims the three backs to be ``A New Set Of Wheels.''
Foster, the 1992 AFC rushing champion with Pittsburgh who was traded to the Panthers in May, was released Aug. 28.
Lassic, Emmitt Smith's backup in Dallas, was hounded by a variety of injuries. He was released after training camp.
Baldwin, mainly a kick returner in three seasons with Cleveland, averaged just 2.5 yards per carry in two starts at halfback for the Panthers. Last week, he officially lost his starting job.
That brings us to Moore, 27, a career backup who was signed the day after the Panthers released Foster. He averaged 3.8 yards on 14 carries last week at Buffalo, his first appearance since being claimed off waivers from San Francisco. He is still trying to learn the playbook.
He built a reputation as a short-yardage banger in two seasons at Detroit. He made three starts in 1993 in place of the injured Barry Sanders, and he responded with 86, 107 and 66 rushing yards.
Those are hardly All-Pro numbers, but they may be good enough to get the Panthers rolling in the right direction.
BLUE DARTS: Where's Junior Seau? The linebacker's fist-pumping, post-tackle histrionics have been noticeably missing from the San Diego Chargers' first two games. The Pro Bowler has only eight tackles and no sacks, compared to 20 tackles and 1 1/2 sacks after two games last year. Observers say a number of factors are keeping his numbers low - the Chargers' defensive calls, other teams avoiding him and his having missed the bulk of training camp with a hamstring injury. ... One reason the Bucs may actually contend for the NFC Central crown - their cream-puff schedule, one that is the second-easiest in the division and fifth-easiest in the league. After Chicago today, the Bucs' next six games are against Washington, Carolina, Cincinnati, Minnesota, Atlanta and Houston. ... For all the talk of how San Francisco will miss Deion, there are these stats: After two games, the 49ers have allowed 51 yards rushing and no rushing first downs. ... Go Figure: Cleveland's rushing total is the lowest in the NFL, while the passing game has blossomed under Vinny Testaverde, second in the AFC in passing. The Browns rank seventh in the NFL in passing. ... Caponomics: Tim McDonald, the 49ers' strong safety, has renegotiated his contract four or five times in the last two years, taking cuts in regular pay but inserting bonus clauses. One of the latter came due last Sunday when he returned an interception 13 yards for a touchdown. He earned $650,000 because he had returned one 52 yards for a score against New Orleans the previous week and the bonus was if he returned two interceptions for touchdowns in a season. Carmen Policy probably figured it was a long shot - the two in one season are as many interceptions he had returned for touchdowns in eight previous NFL seasons. ... Beating Indianapolis and Jacksonville has so unimpressed the oddsmakers that the Bengals opened as a 3 1/2-point underdog for today's game in Seattle against the 0-2 Seahawks.
QUIZ ANSWER: The newest Cowboy cornerback is Deion Luwynn Sanders. by CNB