Prices Dipping For Patriots vs. Steelers Tickets Following Brady Suspension

Tom Brady might be missing be the first four games of the NFL season, but that might not be affecting secondary market ticket prices as much as many would expect. The Wells Report was released last week outlining what was found surrounding the deflation of footballs during the AFC Championship Game. The report found the New England Patriots’ quarterback was “at least generally aware” of alterations to the game balls and late on Monday the NFL handed Brady a four-game suspension. The Patriots were also hit with a $1 million fine and will lose a first-round draft pick in 2016 and a fourth-round draft pick in 2017.

A four game suspension for Brady, if upheld (Brady will appeal) would span the first five weeks of the season as the Patriots have their bye during Week 4. Over that span New England will host only two home games and Patriots tickets have yet to take a big hit on the secondary market for those two games.

As the defending Super Bowl champion, the Patriots will play the first game of the year on the Thursday night of Week 1. The game will come against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday, September 10. Before the Brady suspension was announced, the average price of Patriots vs Steelers tickets on the secondary market was $618.09 with a get-in price of $251. On Tuesday the average price had dropped just 1.2% to $610.19. However, the get-in price has dropped down to $237.

The second home game Brady will potentially miss will come during Week 3 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The game against Jacksonville was already the second least expensive home game of the season at Gillette Stadium and actually saw the average price go up a quarter percent from $359.27 to $360.19.

With how the Patriots schedule is set up, New England will not return home again until Week 7. The game, against the New York Jets, would potentially be Brady’s first game at Gillette in 2015. The average price of Patriots vs Jets tickets, though, has dropped more than the two games without Brady. On Monday afternoon the average was $439.19 and is currently $428.90, a drop of 2.3%.

The most affected game will not come in New England, rather it will be in Indianapolis. The Patriots’ fifth game of the season will be played against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Colts, of course, were the Patriots’ opponent in the AFC Championship Game which led to the investigation of air pressure in the game balls. Before the suspension was announced, Colts vs Patriots tickets had an average price of $306.49. That has jumped 10.4% for a current average of $338.54. The Week 6 game will also be played in primetime on Sunday Night Football.

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