Home games for Lions, Chargers will be blacked out Sunday

Two NFL teams announced local television blackouts for Sunday's games.

Neither the Detroit Lions' game against the Washington Redskins, nor the San Diego Chargers' meeting with the Tennessee Titans will be shown in their respective home markets.

A Lions spokesman said 8,500 tickets remained available as of Thursday afternoon. The Lions had sold out their first two home games this season.

The Chargers announced that more 8,000 general tickets and club seats were available. This will be San Diego's third blackout in four games this season.

The NFL's long-standing policy requires all games not sold out 72 hours before kickoff to be blacked out in the local market. This includes all signals within a 75-mile radius of the stadium and those areas whose television signal reaches within that 75-mile zone. The league's policy affects all telecasts, including cable and satellite.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Bills game to be blacked out on local TV for first time since '06

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- The Buffalo Bills will be blacked out on local television for the first time in nearly four years after failing to sell out Sunday's game against the Jacksonville Jaguars by the NFL deadline.

The Bills didn't reveal how many tickets were unsold by Thursday afternoon to avoid the blackout over a 75-mile radius. Games need to be sold out 72 hours before kickoff.

The blackout is the first for Buffalo in 27 games, dating to Dec. 24, 2006.

After selling out their first two games, fans are showing disinterest in a team that's 0-4.

Last month, the Bills announced they sold just under 44,000 season tickets. Though it marked the team's fifth-highest total since 1995, it was about 11,000 short of last year.

Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press

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