The Chargers' new color scheme is blue, gold and blackout, leaving us to wonder how many more of the latter are on the horizon? The Chargers didn't take the NFL up on its offer to lessen the local television blackout rule ---- games that aren't sold out 72 hours in advance aren't televised in the home team's market. The rule even applies to preseason games, so Saturday's glorified scrimmage between the Chargers and Cowboys at Qualcomm Stadium was only available to those who bought tickets. What, you thought the Padres had cornered the market on ripping off their patrons by charging top dollar for an inferior product? The Chargers could have bought the remaining tickets at a discount and delivered them to military personnel. Or they could have accepted the NFL's offer to put games that don't sell out on the air in exchange for more revenue sharing with the visiting team. Consider Saturday night's sports viewing in San Diego. What a joke. Some 40 percent of the county couldn't watch the Padres play the Giants. And 100 percent of the county was unable to view Chargers-Cowboys. Really? Afraid so, and a peak at the Chargers' schedule shows radio will become more popular. The Broncos, Raiders, and possibly Ravens, should bring full houses. Good luck peddling 60,000 tickets to the Titans, Falcons, Bengals and Panthers dates. Last season had two blackouts; we'll put this year's over-under at four. The most important Chargers names fans need to know are radio's Josh Lewin and Hank Bauer. http://www.nctimes.com/sports/colum...cle_ff855865-9483-564b-a391-3dde7b1c64f7.html
