Dating back to 2009, ironically when the Bengals went to the playoffs, the team has struggled selling tickets to sellout. Now, the truth is, the Bengals haven't had a blackout since 2003 against Houston, riding the wave of a 55-game sellout streak. The league has granted many extensions for the team to sellout, and each time those extensions were granted, someone, typically local companies or WKRC, stepped up to purchase the remaining tickets.
The reasons vary. The economy hurts the wallet. People just prefer to watch from home, with their big screen high definition television. Some actually use Sunday afternoons as family time, or perhaps there's work to do around the house. Some actually have jobs on Sundays. Some fans are just bitter and won't go. Others believe a boycott will cause Mike Brown to suddenly change everything. There's always a reason.
The San Diego Chargers, among several teams in the NFL, are going through the same thing. Even though Sunday's game against the Patriots has sold out, the Chargers have already had two games blacked out this year.
Where Cincinnati has Who Dey Revolution, the Chargers have a group of fans with the aim to prevent future blackouts with a site called StopChargersBlackouts.org. Meet Kyle McCarthy.
He, along with 10 other friends, got serious and started a "Stop Chargers Blackout" website. It asks people and businesses to donate any amount of money, with that money going toward buying leftover Chargers tickets. Those tickets will then be donated to local nonprofit groups, like the Boys & Girls Club and Big Brothers Big Sisters.
The site justifies that fans win because they can see the game on television, businesses (such as bars and restaurants) welcome additional consumers and local charities get the tickets. Quite honestly, it's a brilliant initiative that all fans from every NFL team should do since we already know that the NFL and the NFL teams won't help you out at all.
The remaining Bengals home games have Cincinnati hosting the Miami Dolphins, the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Buffalo Bills, the New Orleans Saints, the Cleveland Browns and the San Diego Chargers. Of those games, only the Bills would be the most likely to break the team's sellout streak.