With just 81 days until Super Bowl XLIV, the South Florida Super Bowl Host Committee’s been pretty busy: volunteer recruitment rallies, meetings to discuss the game’s economic impact on Palm Beach County, the unveiling of the official humidor …

Yes, the Super Bowl has its own officially licensed humidor. Who knew? The Host Committee held an unveiling ceremony Tuesday at Bokampers in Plantation for both the commemorative poster (see below) for next year’s game by 3-D Pop Artist and 10-year veteran Super Bowl artist Charles Fazzino and the humidor (at left). Fazzino’s Super Bowl artwork, which is a colorful and playful illustration of Dolphin Stadium complete with sign-waving fans, also graces the inside of the limited edition humidor.

According to James Colucci, executive vice president of sales and marketing for Altadis U.S.A., which is manufacturing and selling the humidors, it’s the first Super Bowl humidor. There are 500 of these special humidors featuring Fazzino’s artwork. They’re already for sale across the country for about $750 each, Colucci said.

On hand, along with Fazzino, were Miami Dolphins defensive end Randy Starks, Miss Florida USA 2010 Megan Clemente, Mike Zimmer, president of the host committee and Rodney Baretto, chairman of the host committee.

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SI.com set off a spirited debate this afternoon when it reported The Who is to play halftime at next year’s Super Bowl in South Florida. Not to mention the short item on the Web site provided an opportunity to put up a photo of 2007 SI Swimsuit model Tori Praver, because her body-painted outfit featured a T-shirt with The Who logo. (Right, I’m not the demo).

No, it wouldn’t be the first time British Invasion senior citizens rocked the NFL’s big party. Paul McCartney did the honors in Jacksonville in 2005. The following year, it was the Rolling Stones in Detroit – a choice criticized for several reasons, including that the performers should have been Motown artists.

But overall, since the Janet Jackson nipple-bearing wardrobe malfunction in 2004 in Houston, Super Bowl halftime acts have tended to be less modern or as I said in a 2006 story “more American oldie than American Idol” although McCartney and the Rolling Stones would be “British oldie.” Same for The Who.

The NFL wasn’t talking about the choice today. “When we have something to announce, we will announce it,” a league spokesman said.

But the Twitterverse was buzzing:

The LA Times’ Sam Farmer wrote “SI.com reporting the Super Bowl halftime show is.... The Who. Excellent.”

However, John Halpin of FoxSports.com said “A band full of guys in their 60s? NO WAY!”

Or this from Yahoo Sports’ Charles Robinson: “Honestly, Janet Jackson's bare breast was the best thing that happened 2 bands formed B4 1990. They all became Super Bowl eligible again.”

Other tweets on the subject:

" jsquared021: "The Who" is doing the halftime show of Super Bowl 44?...r u serious?...what is the NFL thinking?"

"Soxy_T: I like The Who but playing Super Bowl halftime?! Zzzzzzzzz no wonder they call it the No Fun League"

Don't forget to follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/sarahtalalay

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Sun Sentinel columnist Dave Hyde interviewed Miami Dolphins owner Steve Ross in his 19th floor office at Time Warner Center in Manhattan on Friday. Time Warner Center is the mixed use residential and retail complex Ross’ Related Companies built that has transformed Columbus Circle. The piece ran today before the Dolphins defeated the New York Jets 30-25 at the Meadowlands – and completed a season sweep of their rivals. Read Hyde’s piece here.

Just a quick thought on today’s game: is there another team in the NFL that has worked so hard to be 3-4? Just asking.

And speaking of being 3-4, the Dolphins hope you’ll want to watch the rest of the team’s home games this season live. They’ve introduced a new four-game pack that features lower bowl tickets to each of the team’s final four home games of 2009 for $348. That’s to see the Dolphins play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, Houston Texans and Pittsburgh Steelers. It offers a savings off the individual ticket price and gives you priority for playoff seats. Check it out here.

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When fans arrive at Sunday’s Miami Dolphins-New Orleans Saints game at Land Shark Stadium, they’ll receive an aqua and orange Breathe Right Nasal Strip.

Not eye black, mind you. A nasal strip. It looks something like a Band-Aid -- it's affixed just below the bridge of your nose -- but it helps you breathe easier, while you’re sleeping or exercising.

According to the strips maker, GlaxoSmithKline, NFL players are increasingly using the strips because they reduce the energy needed to breathe, while you’re working out or competing. NFL players have been using them since 1994, the company says.

GSK is planning to distribute 400,000 of the strips in the next month at five NFL games to introduce its Breathe Right Extra Nasal Strips, which are 50 percent stronger than the original version. The company is to give away 75,000 strips to fans attending Sunday’s Dolphins game and 80,000 at Sunday’s New York Giants-Arizona Cardinals game.

“Breathe Right has had a long relationship with professional football players using our products both on and off the field,” Breathe Right vice president of marketing Darren Singer said in a statement. “By sampling the new Extra strips at football stadiums nationwide, we’ll have an opportunity to help people understand that this is a product strong enough for high-performance athletes, but available to every day consumers.”

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The Jacksonville Jaguars host the St. Louis Rams on Sunday and once again the game isn’t being aired on local television. Three home games; three blackouts.

That’s not news -- team officials have predicted they aren’t likely to sell out any home games this season in time to prevent local television blackouts. They’ve blamed the economy. There’s also that loss of 17,000 season ticket holders from last season.

But I think another telling detail is this: a co-worker is one of the Jaguars original season ticket holders. The team played its first game in 1995 and is celebrating its 15th season this year. To honor this milestone, the team sent its original season ticket holders 15-year commemorative pins. Here’s what the note that came with the pins says:

“As a token of our appreciation, we have sent you and 3,819 other special fans who have been with us since Day 1 a pair of 15-year commemorative pins.”

It’s not clear how many season tickets those 3,820 “special fans” account for, but to be at a number that small in just 15 years can’t be good for helping you avoid blackouts.

Meanwhile, here’s a way to tell which NFL games are being broadcast where -- someone’s done a lot of work to figure this out -- check out this site for NFL TV distribution maps. Thanks to Don Walker of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for finding this.

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Miami Dolphins running back Ricky Williams is adding yet another job to his resume: restaurateur.

Williams and former Cincinnati Bengal Rudi Johnson have signed on as co-owners of PROOF on Ocean Drive, a health-conscious restaurant and lounge set to open next month in the Z Ocean Hotel South Beach.

“We are thrilled to have such highly-regarded, well-known backers as Ricky and Rudi in our new venture,” Douglas McAllister, president and CEO of the restaurant’s developers Hospitality Development Management Group, said in a statement. “Their leadership and determination on the field will translate just as well off the field, and will no doubt contribute to our commitment to making PROOF a major Miami Beach hot-spot and success.”

Read Ethan Skolnick’s blog item on the restaurant endeavor here.

Williams isn’t the only local athlete with ties to a South Beach restaurant. Last year, retired Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning joined a group of athletes, including retired Pittsburgh Steeler Jerome Bettis and the Denver Nuggets' Chauncey Billups, who together own about a third of Philippe Miami, the South Beach installment of the upscale Chinese restaurant Philippe Chow in New York. Philippe Miami is in the Gansevoort South Hotel.

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Miami Dolphins owner Steve Ross could be adding Fergie as his next limited partner in the team.

NFL owners meeting in Boston this week approved Fergie as a potential owner in the team, but the Dolphins have yet to complete a deal with the Black Eyed Peas' singer.

“The owners did approve Fergie’s application for ownership today but there is nothing more to announce at this time as a formal agreement has not been completed,” Dolphins owner Steve Ross said via e-mail.

Fergie’s on tour in Australia, so don’t expect a formal announcement until she’s returned. Fergie and the Black Eyed Peas already have a marketing partnership with the Dolphins – that’s why you see all those promotional messages from band members on the scoreboard during home games at Land Shark Stadium.

Fergie also sported a pink Dolphins jersey and recorded a public service message (see video below) for the NFL’s “Crucial Catch” breast cancer screening campaign in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The addition of Fergie would continue to spice up the already crowded orange carpet crowd that makes up Ross’ ownership group.

But Will.i.win?

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Miami Dolphins owner Steve Ross' limited partners weren't the only Latin celebrities to walk the orange carpet Monday to help the NFL celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. Sure Gloria and Emilio Estefan were there, as were Marc Anthony and his wife Jennifer Lopez. Anthony sang the national anthem; the Estefans helped out with the halftime show.

But there were lots of others: IndyCar driver Rafael Matos, who lives in Miami and competed in Saturday's IndyCar Series finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, attended his first football game. “I’m here to see Ronnie Brown and the Wildcat,” Matos said.

Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi and soap opera star wife Adamari Lopez wore matching No. 1 jerseys. Also on hand were: Lili Estefan (Emilio Estefan’s niece) and Raul de Molina of TV’s El Gordo y La Flaca; Mexican pop duo Jesse and Joy; Texas Rangers and former Marlins catcher Pudge Rodriguez; and artist Romero Britto.

Ross and ESPN President George Bodenheimer arrived together. Also walking the orange carpet were model Naomi Campbell; IndyCar driver and Boca Raton resident Ryan Hunter-Reay; Daymond John of TV’s The Shark Tank; and the Heat’s DJ Irie.

"It's an absolute spectacle," Irie said of the atmosphere. "This is the definition of Miami."

Legendary coach Don Shula, who served as honorary captain Monday night, arrived with his wife Mary Anne, to chants of "Shula! Shula! Shula!" As he was walking the carpet, so were some Victoria's Secret Angel wannabes. Shula posed for photos with the women.

The orange carpet has been evolving since it was unveiled at the team's home opener on Sept. 21. On Monday night, Lexus was sponsoring the orange carpet experience, so two Lexus cars -- an IS 250 and an IS 350 -- were displayed on either side of the carpet. At one point, the alarm on one of the cars went off...

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+ Wondering why the Miami Dolphins haven’t struck a sponsorship deal with the Florida lottery now that the NFL allows such arrangements? The Dolphins told me they didn’t think a deal could be reached for this season. The SportsBusiness Journal reports the Dolphins nixed a three-team sponsorship deal with the lottery that would have also included the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars.

The journal says the Dolphins felt they deserved more in the deal. According to the piece, which you can read here, 18 teams have deals with 20 state lotteries.

By the way, through yesterday’s games, Florida’s three teams are a combined 3-11 on the season.

+ But the Dolphins don’t play until tonight – their highly anticipated matchup against the New York Jets at Land Shark Stadium. The MNF game marks the NFL’s celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month. The Dolphins are wearing their orange jerseys; team owner Steve Ross’ Latin limited partners Marc Anthony and wife Jennifer Lopez, Gloria and Emilio Estefan will be out in force. Gloria’s MNF theme video with Hank Williams Jr. complete with lines in Spanish, such as “Estos listos para futbol” debuts. Anthony is to sing the National Anthem. Latin stars perform pregame and during halftime. NFLatino.com has even created a series of videos in honor of the matchup that pit a Hispanic Dolphins and Jets fan. There are four – one for each quarter – with the first showing a child in a Mark Sanchez shirt beating up a dolphin piñata. Thanks to Advertising Age’s Laura Martinez for finding these. Here’s the first one:

Watch the others here: second, third and fourth quarters.

+ The Dolphins are 2-0 when they’ve worn their orange jerseys, but just in case the Jets do win, Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Company (14451 S. Military Trail, Delray Beach) reminds us, customers can get a free bagel the day after a Jets or Giants win. One bagel per customer who can share the winning score. Bagels are being given away today because the Giants beat the Oakland Raiders 44-7. If the Jets win tonight, same drill for customers who can recite the score.

+ Pro Bowl: Tickets for the 2010 Pro Bowl, which is being held the Sunday before the Super Bowl at Dolphin Stadium, go on sale at 7 p.m. They cost $50 to $195. Buy them at NFL.com, Ticketmaster.com or by calling 1-800-745-3000.

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It helps to be a 3-0 quarterback.

Brett Favre’s jersey remained the top seller between April 1 through Sept. 30, according to sales figures from NFLShop.com.

Fellow 3-0 quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (Jets); Eli Manning (Giants); and Joe Flacco (Baltimore Ravens) have all seen their jersey sales spike according to the latest figures. Sanchez is now up to 4 from 7; Manning is up to 7 from 10 and Flacco is ranked 14 from 17.

No Miami Dolphins jerseys ranked in the Top 25, but the NFL says Ronnie Brown is now in the top 50. And despite their 0-3 start, Dolphins gear is close to cracking the Top 10 in team sales. The league only releases the rank of the Top 25 players and Top 10 teams.

Below the Top 10 best-selling jerseys and team gear:

1. Brett Favre
2. Troy Polamalu
3. Jay Cutler
4. Mark Sanchez
5. Michael Vick
6. Tony Romo
7. Eli Manning
8. Tom Brady
9. Ben Roethlisberger
10. Adrian Peterson

1. Pittsburgh Steelers
2. Dallas Cowboys
3. Minnesota Vikings
4. Chicago Bears
5. New York Giants
6. Philadelphia Eagles
7. New England Patriots
8. Green Bay Packers
9. San Francisco 49ers
10. Washington Redskins

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Got a hankering for a New York bagel? Bet on the New York Giants and Jets.

The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co., in Delray Beach is offering customers free bagels on Mondays following a Giants or Jets win on Sunday, if customers can recite the score of either game. One bagel per customer, even if both teams win on Sunday.

“We have customers coming in all the time in their Jets and Giants apparel and we wanted to find a way to thank them for their patronage,” Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co., owner Steve Fassberg said in a statement. “We’d love to give away hundreds of bagels each week as a result.”

On Sunday, the Giants face the Kansas City Chiefs and the Jets play the New Orleans Saints. “Fuggetaboutpaying!” a release about the promotions says, if either team wins and you remember the score.

The store, which makes fresh bagels using “replicated Brooklyn water from patented technology,” is located at 14451 S. Military Trail, Delray Beach.

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With the Miami Dolphins now 0-3 to start the 2009 season after a 23-13 loss to the San Diego Chargers this afternoon, filling up Land Shark Stadium for next Sunday’s game against the Buffalo Bills (1-2) could be a challenge.

The team hasn’t had a regular season game blacked out on local television in more than a decade.

But team officials were already anticipating avoiding blackouts this season might be tough given that season ticket sales dropped nearly 16 percent last season to 46,131 – the team’s lowest level since 1992. Season ticket sales are up and expected to exceed 50,000 this year. But the team must sell 62,133 upper and lower level seats at least 72 hours before kickoff to prevent games from being blacked out on local TV.

The team, which is scheduled to play the Bills at 4:05 p.m. Sunday, is offering a new “Fins Value Pack” for Sunday’s game – with help from Pepsi and Ball Park. For $45, you get an upper level corner/endzone seat, and vouchers for a free soda and a hot dog. That’s a $58 value.

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Better late than never…. I was again part of the sports business panel on sports consultant Rick Horrow’s local show, Beyond the Game, on WPEC Ch. 12 in West Palm Beach on Saturday. (The show airs at 7:30 p.m. on Saturdays). Former Miami Dolphin Troy Stradford and Horrow Sports Ventures creative director Brian Finkel and I covered the Dolphins Monday Night home opener; games we were watching in Week 2; so-called “body bag games” in which lower level college programs travel to big-time programs for the cash payouts; and the Miami Heat’s staff pay cuts. Watch here.

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In addition to all the new celebrity limited partners, pregame concerts, Jimmy Buffett beer and rewritten Fins song, the Miami Dolphins are also enhancing the technology at Land Shark Stadium.

Before Monday’s home opener, which the Dolphins lost to the Indianapolis Colts, team owner Steve Ross and Cisco CEO John Chambers gave a glimpse of how upgraded technology across the stadium is improving the game experience for fans.

Did you wait in line for concessions? If so, you no doubt saw the new high definition menu boards which can also broadcast game action so you don’t miss a thing while you’re waiting for beer and snacks.

Chambers said the Dolphins are being proactive about reaching fans – the majority of whom – especially those under age 30 -- say they want their sports venues to be high-tech and offer the latest technological advances.

There are 2,000 TV screens throughout Land Shark Stadium that can be programmed together or individually, so you can watch the game and get important messages, if necessary. Suite holders can use the phone in their suite to program the TVs to show different camera angles or other broadcast feeds during the game. They can also use the phones to order food.

Need a place to hold a business meeting with someone out of town? The Dolphins can arrange it so you can visit your suite during business hours and even set up a teleconference with a colleague in another city. Sports consultant (and friend of Ross’), Rick Horrow, demonstrated the teleconferencing, beaming in for Ross’ and Chambers’ meeting with the media.

Ross has been stressing that it takes work to encourage fans off their couches and away from their TVs to attend games in person.

“Today with the competition for the sports dollar, it’s so important that you create reasons for fans to want to come out to a game, as opposed to staying home and watching the game on television on large screens,” Ross said.

Horrow echoed Ross’ mantra, saying sports teams “need to give the fan the opportunity to live the game. You can’t always win … but you can certainly entertain.”

Horrow continued: “A facility that can entertain will offer the ability to showcase Super Bowls, Pro Bowls, University of Miami, not just the Dolphins, but all the things Steve is trying to accomplish at Land Shark Stadium.”

“We’re just scratching the surface,” said Tery Howard, Dolphins vice president of information technology. “This is not only for the fans, but also for the business partners and sponsors.”

The TV screens can be altered to welcome new sponsors or visitors. And adapted quickly for a University of Miami or a Florida Marlins game.

Read more about the details of the partnership here.

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The fun is supposed to start long before the Miami Dolphins and Indianapolis Colts take the field for Monday Night Football at Land Shark Stadium tonight. Pregame concerts, the “orange” carpet, the celebrity limited partners…

The pregame activities get started at 4:30 p.m. at the Grand Plaza at Gate G. At 5:15 p.m., Jimmy Stowe performs live at the Land Shark Tailgate Stage near Gate F – he’ll also be performing at 6:15 p.m. and 7:15 p.m. At 6 p.m. there will be a wakeboard demonstration near Gate H.

The celebrity orange carpet arrival is to begin at 7 p.m. by Gate G and yes, limited partners Gloria and Emilio Estefan, Marc Anthony (and wife, singer-actress Jennifer Lopez), and Venus and Serena Williams are expected. So are Bob Griese and Dan Marino, who will be honorary captains performing the coin toss before the game.

Oh, and at 7:45 p.m., don’t be surprised if the surprise guest performer is none other than … Jimmy Buffett. Surprised? Halftime is to feature 600 Parrot Heads dancing to Fins.

And in case you missed it, here’s today’s Two-Minute Drill interview with Dolphins CEO Mike Dee:

Mike Dee spent 14 years working in Major League Baseball, the past five as chief operating officer of the Boston Red Sox, before being named CEO of the Dolphins in May. Staff Writer Sarah Talalay asked Dee about moving from baseball to football and the Dolphins’ 2009 home opener against the Indianapolis Colts tonight, which happens to be Dee’s birthday. Dee grew up in Maryland, rooting for the Baltimore Colts.

Q. What’s the biggest difference between baseball and football?

A. You start to immediately recognize that every game [in football] is like the seventh game of a playoff series, the regular season is so important. And obviously it’s that way for the football team and the coaching staff and the players take that seriously, but it’s also important on the business side. You have to make sure you get everything right, If you misstep or don’t get something right one game of the year, that’s 10 percent of your schedule. And that’s coming from a place like Boston, where every game was a sellout, so every game was a big deal. But when you only have 10 games, eight in the regular season, it puts a lot of pressure on you to get it right.

Q. The home opener is on a Monday night and it’s against the Colts. What does that mean to you?

A. My team growing up. Isn’t that amazing? It’s actually eerie. My parents and I talked about this, like can you imagine on your 46 birthday all those things happen? I live a charmed life. At least I recognize it.

Q. Do you consider the Colts the team you grew up with even though they moved from Baltimore?

A. I do. Oh yes. They’re the team I grew up with. I became a Dolphins fan when I was 22.

Q. How did that happen?

A. The Colts left and I moved to South Florida [for a job in a family-owned paint company]. Two months after I moved here, I went to the Monday night game against the Bears [Dec. 2, 1985]. I was mad at the Colts for leaving, I was an independent, I had left my party. I was a free agent fan, and I walked into the Orange Bowl and the electricity in that game, just being here in South Florida, at the time, I remember wow. From that day forward I was a Dolphins fan. I’ve been described by some online bloggers as a quote unquote newbie … but I’ve been around for 25 years as a fan… and stayed with it, even after it was the Shula-Marino era that sucked me into it and got me excited. But I’ve stayed with it all the way through the good times and the bad times.”

Oh, and don't forget to follow me on Twitter: @sarahtalalay

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Sports consultant Rick Horrow’s new local show Beyond the Game began airing on WPEC Ch. 12 in West Palm Beach on Saturday. Yours truly was on the sports business panel along with former Miami Dolphin Troy Stradford and Brian Finkel, creative director of Horrow Sports Ventures and a student in FAU’s sports management program.

We touched on what to expect at Land Shark Stadium on Dolphins game days; the Dolphins’ new AT&T sponsor patch on practice jerseys, and sports business news around the NFL. Watch it here. The show airs Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.

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As of today, the Miami Dolphins have now joined 17 other NFL teams in sporting sponsor patches on their practice jerseys.

NFL owners approved putting sponsor patches on practice jerseys earlier this year, but until today – the first day of regular season practice – the Dolphins hadn’t had worn a patch. Today they’re wearing an AT&T logo on their jerseys.

“It’s a league-wide initiative that does now allow for sponsorships on practice jerseys during the regular season,” Dolphins spokesman Harvey Greene said. “We took advantage to provide additional values to one of our largest corporate sponsors.”

Greene would not disclose financial details of the deal, but AT&T is already a team sponsor. Regular season practices are closed to the public and only open to the media for short periods on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays and on Mondays when a full practice is scheduled. That means there is some potential media exposure for the corporate logos.

Under NFL rules, teams had until Sept. 1 to finalize deals with one corporate sponsor for a patch on practice jerseys. Separate deals can be made for the playoffs, an NFL spokesman said.

Other NFL teams with practice jersey sponsors include the Buffalo Bills with Sanyo, Chicago Bears with Northshore University Healthsystem, Cincinnati Bengals with Spongetech, Dallas Cowboys with the University of Phoenix, Indianapolis Colts with Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, and the New England Patriots with Gillette.

Leagues have been softening their stance on corporate logos on jerseys this year. The NBA is now allowing sponsor patches on practice jerseys. The New Jersey Nets announced Tuesday they have become the first NBA team to strike a practice jersey sponsorship deal. The team will wear the logo for PNY Technologies Inc., a manufacturer and supplier of computing and digital imaging products. PNY will also own the naming rights to the team’s practice facility in East Rutherford.

The WNBA this season allowed sponsor logos on its regular season uniforms and two teams took advantage: the Phoenix Mercury struck a deal with LifeLock and the Los Angeles Sparks forged a partnership with Farmer’s Insurance. MLS players also wear sponsor logos on their jerseys during the season.

How long before sponsor logos appear on jerseys during the big four sports’ regular seasons?

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Miami Dolphins owner Steve Ross and CEO Mike Dee met with Sun Sentinel editors and reporters this morning. Here are some of their answers to some of your questions:

Q. A number of fans really don’t like the new fight song, they don’t like the T-Pain version. A lot of people don’t like hearing Jimmy Buffett’s Fins when the team scores.

A. Ross: A lot of people do like the Fins song. The thing is you don’t know what people like and you don’t get a feeling for impact until you try something. We’re experimenting. That ‘s what preseason is for. I think Jimmy Buffett will definitely be part of it, he’s not going away. We happen to like the song, we’ve gotten a tremendous amount of favorable comments with regard to that. I think the T-Pain version was controversial. You have to realize, people inherently don’t like change. Same old, same old.

Q. I’ve never heard so many people love that fight song until you changed it.

A. Ross: Isn't it unbelievable? The biggest surprise I’ve ever seen in my life. You have the same feeling I have, you have to look at change. We’re not done looking at ideas to do that, because there was so much negativity about the existing fight song before.

Dee: Basically T-Pain contributed that song, we played it at the first preseason game. Again it was a preseason game, we were experimenting and continue to experiment there are at least two other people I know of, who want to contribute their own version of the fight song, different than T-Pain’s. It wasn’t the old song out and T-Pain’s in. I think it was hey here’s a version that may appeal to a different listener and perhaps there will be two more that have a different flair as well. I think it’s fair to say we recognize the sacred nature of the original version.

Q. Old fight song, it’s not like it’s dead, you’ll still be playing it, but might be interspersing it with others?

A. Dee: It might have a different role. Before it was played exclusively after scores. And we’re still working on how it will be used.

Ross: But we want to start a ritual, we don’t know what song it will be, after the third period, there will be a song we’ll sing on a continual basis. I can’t tell you what that song will be. To inspire people, like the seventh inning stretch, and really inspire the team. You want to start that in football, you want to do after the third period in every game. We’re going to come up with one until we find the right song, that we sing and everybody’s ready for it at the end of the third period, kind of a ritualistic thing that I think will be interesting in football.

Q. Do you have plans to change the team colors and uniforms?

A. Ross: We haven’t even looked at that. I haven’t thought of it.

Dee: Not this year and we just missed the deadline for 2010, so not next year either.

Q. Would you consider selling pieces of the team to retired Dolphins player greats?

A. Ross: No.

Q. Why not sell a one share to the fans or season ticket holders? I don't think you can do that in the NFL.

A. Ross: That isn’t allowed in the NFL, you’re limited to I think 25 owners and it’s not the kind of thing [where] you want a public company. They don’t allow public companies. Someone has to be able to make all the decisions without going to a board or anybody else, which I think is good, because that way you get decisions made. You don’t have fights within different teams which certain sports have, you know divisions. I’m prepared to take all the blame, but still the fans we love them and they’re the most important thing we have. I want to make sure they feel good about the team.

Q. Is there any way you could make ticket prices cheaper? Is there an opportunity to offer a standing room seat? At the Cowboys new stadium, the cheapest seats are $25.

A. Dee: We’re one of the best values in the NFL. Our ticket pricing is in I think the lower third of all teams, we have currently 4,600 seats that cost $31, which is one of the lowest price points in the NFL. That’s per seat, not a standing room seat. We are looking at standing room, kind of irrespective of costs, we think standing room is good and is part of our evaluation of the facility moving forward. We’ll continue to be competitive with the South Florida marketplace and what entertainment experiences are out there and you know overtime we want to make sure we stay competitively priced, given the dynamic of our marketplace.

Q. Is there any ability or talk of moving some seats closer to the field? That’s what people miss about the Orange Bowl.

A. Ross: That’s one of the things we’re looking at. This year with the Sideline Club (passes that allow on-field access throughout the game, new this season) they’re going to be closer to the field. We are studying it. I think when we come up with a total package, I think we can really have a major impact on the stadium.

Q. Is there anything that can be done about the dirt infield, until the Marlins are gone?

A. Ross: We have two more seasons of that. There’s nothing you can do. Contractually we’re obligated.

Dee: We have made the effort over the last couple of years, our grounds crew has sodded the pitcher’s mound area, and we’ve sodded the west endzone corner, which used to be exposed on that terrible rubber warning track, we do that for preseason games, took the turf down. It’s pretty much what it is until they’re gone.

Q. What about a retractable roof at Land Shark Stadium?

A. Ross: We’re studying all that, I don’t think it would be a retractable roof, because I don’t think one, the cost. I don’t think the county, in these economic times has the money and I think the cost of acclimatizing a stadium is so expensive and for the amount of usage it would get it’s probably not feasible. It probably doesn’t need a retractable roof from a football standpoint or soccer. But one thing we’re looking at, is how to do we really improve the stadium and cover some of those issues, not having a roof.

Q. Does that mean some sort of covering over some areas?

A. Ross: Yes.

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Pittsburgh Steelers fans gather at East Side Pub in Fort Lauderdale to watch their team on Sundays.

Philadelphia Eagles fans in Fort Lauderdale (Fort Lauderdale Eagles Army) meet at the Parrot Lounge. The Boyntondelphia Eagles will be frequenting Bru’s Room Sports Grill in Boynton Beach (last year it was Duffy’s Sports Grill, but they need more room, the group tells me).

New York Jets fans head to Gatsby’s in West Palm Beach; Chicago Bears fans to Capone’s Flicker-Lite Pizza and Raw Bar in Hollywood.

So where do you go to catch your favorite hometown or out-of-town team? Let me know -- and please indicate which team you follow and if you join other fans of that team -- in the comments section or email me directly: stalalay@sunsentinel.com

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The Dolphins are beefing up the business side of the organization under new CEO Mike Dee. The team has hired two new executives, promoted some current ones and altered a few job descriptions.

The team, which announced the changes Thursday, called the moves “the first step in the eventual integration of the team and Land Shark Stadium businesses.”

Dolphins President and Chief Operating Officer Bryan Wiedmeier moves to the newly created position of senior vice president of NFL affairs & special projects. The team release says “Wiedmeier will work closely with Dee on NFL matters and a variety of special assignments.” Not entirely sure what that means at this point, other than it likely includes working more extensively on preparations for next year’s Super Bowl and Pro Bowl being held at Lank Shark Stadium, which will be known as Dolphin Stadium for the games.

Stadium President Bruce Schulze is to focus on the stadium’s operation and fan experience and Senior Director of Community Relations & Government Affairs Eric Knowles is to expand the team's government relations outreach, the team release said.

Dee, who previously worked at the Boston Red Sox and San Diego Padres, also hired two former colleagues: Adam Grossman, vice president of marketing at the Boston Red Sox, was named Dolphins’ senior vice president of public affairs, and Mark Tilson, who worked for the Padres and most recently as the Kansas City Royals’ vice president of sales & marketing, becomes Dolphins senior vice president of sales & ticket operations.

Other changes: Ilona Wolpin becomes senior director of community relations up from community relations manager; Matt Thomas adds vice president to his General Counsel and Football Administration title; Tery Howard, who oversees the stadium and team’s technology efforts, becomes senior vice president/Chief Technology Officer; and Danielle Sergeant was promoted to director of client services.

"We have made a commitment to build a tier one organization that will be equipped to execute the great vision and high expectations that Steve Ross has set for this franchise," Dee said in a statement. “We believe that these moves were essential to make at this time in order to begin the process of positioning the franchise for future growth and to maximum efficiency."

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Dozens of volunteers for the South Florida Super Bowl Host Committee were getting ready for the 2010 Pro Bowl and Super Bowl this afternoon at Land Shark Stadium. They were auditioning to be in an ad campaign promoting the two big games South Florida will host Jan. 31 and Feb. 7, respectively.

Ronin Advertising of Coconut Grove took headshots of the aspiring actors and actresses and then asked them to say three lines with all the “passion for football” they could muster:

“Are you ready for some football?”

“Come on down and hang out for the Super Bowl and the Pro Bowl.”

“Will you own the moment, or will the moment own you?”

“I feel like Hank Williams Jr. here,” said Laurie Steele, of West Palm Beach, as she prepared to say her lines.

Ronin was looking for volunteers to represent the NFL’s 32 teams in TV, print and outdoor advertising. They’ll don jerseys and other NFL gear, such as a cheesehead hat for the Green Bay Packers fan. The fans will also be wearing shorts and flip-flops -- since the big game is returning to South Florida for a record 10th time -- and the Pro Bowl will be played here, too, rather than in Hawaii.

“Our goal is to get a cross-section of fans,” said Kristen Mathieson, a senior account executive at Ronin.

The ads are scheduled to be shot Aug. 11 and 12 and begin airing around the start of the 2009 football season. In the meantime, here’s the ad Ronin shot featuring Don Shula to promote Super Bowl XLI in 2007 – the last time the game was here.

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Dolphins owner Stephen M. Ross did try to recruit rock star Jon Bon Jovi to join his ownership group even entertaining him along with Heat guard Dwyane Wade in his suite at the Dolphins playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens in January.

But according to the SportsBusiness Journal, Bon Jovi’s demands were too rich. Bon Jovi, the trade publication reported last week, “insisted upon an exclusive arrangement during their talks late last year.”

That would have prevented Ross from adding the celebrities he’s enticed to join his ownership group this summer, including Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Marc Anthony, who was announced as a new minority owner today. Last month, Gloria Estefan and her producer husband Emilio Estefan agreed to buy a small stake in the team.

Ross forged a partnership with pop singer Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville enterprise in May that included re-naming the team’s stadium after Buffett’s Land Shark Lager for this season. Buffett has an option to purchase a stake in the team, but so far has not become a minority owner.

There are likely to be a few other names to come, Ross said today in a conference call from New York, where he and Anthony had announced their partnership. The pair were joined by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and ESPN President George Bodenheimer at a press conference at New York’s Time Warner Center, the Columbus Circle condo-retail complex built by Ross’ Related Cos. Enjoy this description of the event from The New York Times' Fifth Down Blog.

Ross said he always planned to add investors to his ownership group, but wants those partners to reflect the South Florida community. Adding the Estefans and Anthony, who is married to singer-actress Jennifer Lopez, help add to the Latin flavor of the ownership group.

“The Miami Dolphins want to really represent the community itself,” Ross said. “Having Marc and Emilio and Gloria is important for showing this community, this team is about them. They are great representatives of the Latin community.

“There will be a few more people who will join them,” Ross added.

Goodell and Bodenheimer attended the press conference to announce the league and network’s involvement in celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. They will hold a series of special events around the Dolphins-New York Jets Monday Night game on Oct. 12 at Land Shark Stadium.

That night, ESPN, which is broadcasting the game, will debut a special version of Hank Williams Jr.’s “Are You Ready for Some Football” video featuring Gloria Estefan – in a Dolphins jersey – and some lyrics in Spanish. Anthony, meanwhile, will perform the National Anthem at the stadium.

As for Anthony’s additional involvement in the team, he and Ross said it’s too early to say, but they’ve already been discussing ideas. Ross said Anthony was brought in for his ideas, not just to perform.

“This is a business investment. To bring his ideas, his creativity,” Ross said stressing that Anthony is writing a check for his investment, although the amount was not disclosed.

Anthony, who has sold more than 10 million albums worldwide, said he can’t wait to get started.

“The most important thing now is Steve is open, he’s a great listener and a great visionary,” Anthony said. “I want to fly to Miami right now and sit at my desk.”

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Yahoo Inc. has dropped its lawsuit against the NFL Players union over paying for the right to use players’ names and statistics in its fantasy football games. The two sides reached a settlement, but the details weren’t disclosed.

Yahoo filed suit in federal court in Minneapolis last month, following the lead if CBS Interactive, which sued the players union last year on behalf of Fort Lauderdale-based CBSSports.com. A federal judge ruled in CBS’ favor in April that the names and stats are protected by the First Amendment.

That ruling followed an earlier federal appeals court decision in a case involving Major League Baseball that said MLB players’ names and stats are in the public domain. Both CBS and Yahoo believed the baseball ruling applies to football games as well.

The players association has appealed the ruling in the CBS case.

The Fantasy Sports Trade Association has supported Yahoo and CBS in their legal action, but has contended repeatedly that the fantasy game providers and leagues should work together to promote the games.

Andrew Feffer, the union's chief operating officer and executive vice president, told the Associated Press the NFLPA and Yahoo "continue to explore additional opportunities to work together."

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Had a chance to catch up a little bit with new Dolphins CEO Mike Dee this week.

The veteran sports team executive, who joined the Dolphins in May after five years as Chief Operating Officer at the Boston Red Sox, is as enthusiastic about enhancing the business side of the Dolphins, as his new boss, team owner Stephen M. Ross.

Dee shares Ross’ philosophy that owning and running a franchise is akin to being the steward of a community asset. The two want to be as inclusive as possible with all fans, Dee said: “We have a new saying that: no fan gets left behind.”

That partly explains the new partnerships with Jimmy Buffett and Gloria and Emilio Estefan. Dee reiterated that while Ross’ priority is winning, he wants to ensure an entertaining fan experience, too.

“We want to make sure everything we do is fun, looking through the lens of the fan,” Dee said. “Steve’s career and his success has been built on being avant garde. He’s a bold aggressive entrepreneur. That’s what attracted me to him. He lives outside the box. That’s what makes him successful and also what makes it fun.”

The changes being made are Ross putting his “own stamp” on the team,” Dee said.

And it’s the success of the business side, Dee says, that can help the football side make upgrades and sign new players.

Among Dee’s challenges is boosting season ticket sales. Season ticket sales dropped to 47,000 in 2008, from 54,465 in 2007 and 61,121 in 2006. Dee said he expects the team to sell about 50,000 in 2009, but he’s aiming for more than 60,000 in the next few years.

“Season ticket holders are the lifeblood of your franchise,” Dee said. “We have some work to do.”

The Land Shark Stadium concession stands are being upgraded. The 100 and 400 level concession stands are being equipped with 180 flat-screen digital menu boards – just like the 110 that were installed on the club level in 2007 during the stadium’s $300 million renovation.

He said the team is also evaluating the ticket pricing in the 100 and 400 levels.

Expect more announcements of enhancements in the coming weeks. Stay tuned...

Putting his money where his mouth is: Dee says he’s making a contribution to the Dolphins Foundation each time he references the Red Sox.

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Got your attention, right? That’s the idea.

If he can negotiate the price of ESPN talent’s lunch in an ad for ESPN’s SportsCenter (see ad below), then why can’t super NFL agent Drew Rosenhaus help out the Panthers fan with his or her ticket prices?

OK, to be clear: he has not really been hired by fans to negotiate ticket prices – who, after all, is going to pay for that? -- but he is being used as part of the Panthers’ plans to market the team for the 2009-10 season.

He tweeted about it - in all seriousness - earlier today.

“As a longtime Panthers fan and a person who believes in giving sports fans the value and the atmosphere they deserve, I am absolutely thrilled to represent the Cats faithful at the bargaining table,” Rosenhaus says in a press release issued as part of the campaign. “That said, this a unique situation for me to represent the fans as opposed to professional athletes. But as a passionate Cats follower, I’ve got my finger on the pulse of the BankAtlantic Center faithful.”

Panthers President Michael Yormark said he's gotten just the kind of response he'd hoped: attention and national media calling to talk about the "negotiations."

"We wanted to create an out of the box, unique and different type of ticket marketing campaign," Yormark said late this afternoon. “It’s getting us top of mind, we haven’t even launched our campaign yet."

Rather than just send out a press release with new ticket pricing that might languish in emailboxes, the Panthers wanted to create a buzz. And figured, why not have Rosenhaus, a well-known South Floridian, help start it?

"What we’re trying to do is raise awareness for this announcement of our new pricing. We don’t expect Drew Rosenhaus to sell tickets for us, what we do expect is Drew Rosenhaus is going to help us introduce new pricing," Yormark said. "He opens up doors for us, we might not have been able to open ... You want people thinking about your product, thinking about the Panthers."

Rosenhaus will be appearing in TV, print and radio ads on behalf of the Panthers set to break next week. That's when we'll learn about the new ticket prices, too.

Apparently Rosenhaus is a Panthers fan, so does it make sense to have one of the region’s most recognizable figures in sports promote the Panthers? What do you think?

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The new business developments keep coming from the Dolphins and Land Shark Stadium. OK, this one isn’t about a celebrity (Jimmy Buffett, Gloria and Emilio Estefan) or added technology (Kangaroo TV handhelds for premium seat holders).

It’s a multi-year marketing partnership with Premiere Global Sports to provide travel packages to Dolphins home and away games and special events. The company is designing packages for Dolphins away games that start at $245 and include two-night hotel stays, game tickets and a game-day souvenir. The packages for fans from out of South Florida for home games start at $345 and include two nights at the Courtyard Fort Lauderdale Beach, game tickets and a souvenir.

For more information and to book packages, visit sportstravel.com/dolphins.

The company has worked with a number of teams, including arranging trips for New York Rangers fans to Prague for the team’s opening series last year and is arranging trips for St. Louis Blues fans wanting to attend the opening series against the Detroit Red Wings in Stockholm in October.

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Just as news was breaking Monday that she and her husband have agreed to buy a small minority stake in the Dolphins, Gloria Estefan was taping an updated Monday Night Football video for the 2009 season with Hank Williams Jr. in Nashville. (See photo courtesy of ESPN, by Frederick Breedon IV, of Williams with Estefan decked out in Marino jersey).

Estefan is to appear in the opening video with Williams before the Oct. 12 Monday night game featuring the Dolphins versus the New York Jets at Land Shark Stadium. Some of lyrics in the Estefan-Williams version of the MNF song are in Spanish and the video will honor Hispanic Heritage Month.

Don't forget to follow me on Twitter: @sarahtalalay

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The New York Observer’s latest Power 100 ranking of “The Most Powerful People in New York Real Estate,” places Dolphins owner Stephen M. Ross No. 2, behind only… President Barack Obama.

Ross, who is chairman and CEO of the Related Cos. (when he’s not working on the latest fan amenity at Land Shark Stadium), actually rose from No. 3 on the paper’s 2008 list. The publication calls Ross “the city’s unparalleled king of private development” who developed the Time Warner Center and is “the designated developer” of the West Side rail yards.

The list includes state and national politicians, hoteliers and university presidents. Donald Trump ranks No. 16, up from 38 last year. Two other sports team owners made the list: New Jersey Nets owner Bruce Ratner, who is still trying to develop Atlantic Yards with a new Nets arena in Brooklyn, fell from No. 8 last year to No. 23 this year; and New York Jets owner Woody Johnson ranks No. 68, as board president of luxury co-op 834 Fifth Avenue.

Reminder: follow me on Twitter @sarahtalalay

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Concerned about threats that it would be sued, Yahoo Inc., became the second major fantasy sports provider to sue the NFL Players union over use of players' names and statistics in its fantasy football games.

The suit filed in federal court in Minneapolis on Monday is similar to one filed by CBS Interactive on behalf of Fort Lauderdale-based CBSSports.com last year. A federal judge ruled in CBS’ favor on April 28, saying the players’ names and stats are protected by the First Amendment.

That ruling followed an earlier federal appeals court decision that said Major League Baseball players’ names and stats are in the public domain. Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear that case.

Last week, the NFL Players Association and its marketing arm, Players Inc., appealed the ruling in the CBS case.

Yahoo, whose last licensing agreement with Players Inc., expired March 1, cites the CBS ruling in its suit. Yahoo believes the ruling should apply to all fantasy providers, just as the judge in the CBS case ruled the baseball ruling also applies to football.

“In the CBSI case, the court held that the provider of a fantasy football game did not require a license from Players Inc. in order to operate a game that used player names, statistics, images and other information,” Yahoo’s case states.

The Yahoo case was filed in Minneapolis, which is where the both the baseball case and the CBS case were decided. Friendly courts, anyone?

The Fantasy Sports Trade Association is supporting Yahoo’s case, but as it has said repeatedly, it hopes the leagues and game providers can work together to promote fantasy gaming.

“The fact that the NFL Players Association continues to demand licensing fees is disheartening news for the industry, and for fantasy sports participants,” FSTA President Paul Charchian said in a statement. “The Players’ Association is seemingly oblivious to the obvious and tangible benefits derived from the proliferation of fantasy sports, along with the many cases that have already been decided in favor of fantasy operators. While the FSTA will support Yahoo in this case, we also hope to cooperate with each of the players’ associations to help maximize fantasy sports products.”

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The Dolphins will put a “limited number” of four-game season ticket packages on sale at 10 a.m. Tuesday for “a limited time.” But while the deal is more economical than paying individual ticket prices and includes some season ticket holder benefits, such as playoff ticket purchase priority (based on availability), it might not be enough to convince some fans it’s worth the price.

Set up like a Chinese menu (one from Column A, two from Column B), this plan has “Aqua” games and “Orange” games. But you only get to choose one Aqua game, which includes the more desirable opponents: the home opener Monday Night contest against the Indianapolis Colts; New York Jets; New England Patriots; and Pittsburgh Steelers.

To fill out the rest of your plate, er, plan, you’ve got to pick THREE from among: Buffalo Bills, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Houston Texans.

The plan costs $75 per ticket, per game in Land Shark Stadium’s upper level and $87 per ticket per game in the stadium’s lower level. New team CEO Mike Dee is pitching it as an “affordable alternative” that provides “the flexibility for fans to customize their 2009 Dolphins experience prior to individual game tickets going on sale.”

To purchase the tickets, call 1-888-FINS-TIX or visit miamidolphins.com.

Also, I'm on Twitter now -- follow me: @sarahtalalay

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“Some say that Judge Sotomayor saved baseball,” President Barack Obama is quoted as saying of his Supreme Court Justice nominee Sonia Sotomayor. Obama explained that the temporary injunction she issued in 1995 ended the baseball players strike that wiped out the end of the 1994 season as well as the playoffs and World Series.

Sotomayor, then a federal judge, issued an injunction against the owners requiring they restore free agency and arbitration. Players agreed to return to work and the injunction set the stage for a new labor agreement to be reached.

It may have been the only case of Obama cited in announcing his choice of the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals judge to replace Justice David H. Souter, but it’s far from her only case dealing with sports. She was also on a panel that reversed a ruling that made former Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett eligible for the 2004 NFL draft.

There are several other notable cases. Check out the Sports Law Blog to see a rundown of other sports cases she ruled in.

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The 2010 Super Bowl will be played at Dolphin Stadium (the venue currently known as Land Shark Stadium). Unless, of course, the Dolphins are lucky enough to land another corporate sponsor in the coming months, which is not something Dolphins owner Stephen M. Ross expects to happen in this economy.

For now, the Dolphin Stadium signs are slowly being replaced with Land Shark signs. The NFL’s Super Bowl bid specifications prohibit the host venue of the Super Bowl to be named for a short-term deal, which is what the Land Shark deal is. It’s been described as a marketing or branding opportunity, since a source says Land Shark isn’t contributing money to the deal.

The deal elicited some unusual responses from some NFL team owners at the spring meeting in Fort Lauderdale this week.

“I think Steve Ross is a great entrepreneur. He knows what he’s doing,” New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft said.

“I certainly have no objection to it,” Houston Texans owner Bob McNair said. “We look at all types of businesses and we sell beer along with food. You know, it could be Wiener Stadium or something. So I don’t view that as a problem. They might think, though, that Greg Norman might have an interest in it, too.”

With the New York Giants and Jets seeking a naming rights partner for the new stadium they will share, Giants co-owner John Mara told my colleague Ethan J. Skolnick, the Land Shark deal wouldn’t be his choice for a corporate sponsorship.

“It's such a unique deal. I just don't know,” Mara said. “Certainly, it's not the deal we're looking for. But there are a lot of circumstances that went into that, and I don't pretend to understand them all. I don't think we'll see too many more of those.”

Meanwhile, Land Shark Lager wasn’t in the Anheuser-Busch section at our neighborhood Publix last week. It wasn’t in the premium domestics either, but there was one 12-pack nestled between the Mexican and Dutch beers. (It’s brewed in Jacksonville). It was on sale for $12.99 – a savings of $1.70.

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Just to re-cap and fill in some of the details from the NFL owners spring meeting at the Ritz-Carlton in Fort Lauderdale:

+ South Florida lost out to New Orleans – which was the favorite – to land the 2013 Super Bowl. South Florida Super Bowl Host Committee officials, who are preparing for the 2010 game and the Pro Bowl, are already planning to bid for the 2014 game. Typically bid packages go out in November and owners vote in the spring.

+ The league and the players association are to begin discussions for a new players’ contract next month, but NFL General Counsel Jeff Pash says he has no time frame for how long negotiations should take. The league opted out of the last two years of the current agreement meaning the deal ends in 2011 and the 2010 season will be played without a salary cap. Some owners believe the agreement, which guarantees roughly 60 percent of football revenues go to player salaries, isn’t working. NFL Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith, who met with owners at their meeting Tuesday, said he isn’t sure why owners feel that way.

“We all know that the players didn't opt out of this deal. We do know that the NFL generated in excess of $8 billion last year. We know that the average team has grown by 400 percent in 10 years. We know that the average team is worth in excess of a billion dollars,” Smith said. “What we don't understand is what is wrong with the current deal when we know those facts exist? And if you want to move or start negotiations it seems to me that we need to understand why they believe that the current deal wasn't good.”

+ Owners didn’t vote on whether to extend the regular season to 17 or 18 games, but they discussed the issue. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell promised the players and partners would be brought in on discussions. Smith said the key to discussions is determining the average each team makes per game and considering why players’ salaries drop for playoff games.

“The players understand the cost to their bodies. The players understand how tough it is to get through a regular season,” Smith said. “They understand the cost. What they don't understand is when their playoff salary drops to $20,000 a game, what's the net profit for the team for that game? And once they understand that, then we can understand or at least be in a process to discuss what the right cost compensation model is for an extra game.”

+ The league reached agreement with Comcast to expand the number of homes that can view the NFL Network from 2 million to 10.8 million by moving the network from a higher pay tier to Comcast’s Digital Classic service. The league also reached agreements with CBS and Fox to extend their rights to broadcast NFL games by two years until at least 2013. Goodell said conversations are also taking place with NBC about an extension.

+ Owners voted Tuesday to allow teams to forge partnerships with their local and state lotteries to generate revenue. Team logos could appear on lottery tickets – as they do in other leagues (see Red Sox example at left) – but only for scratch-off or chance games. “It would not be based on the outcome of games,” Goodell said. “That’s a critical feature for us. We do think it’s responsive to pressures states are feeling right now to help meet some of those shortfalls, what we can do with states and our clubs, to be able to try to create some additional revenue, and I think it has been effective in other sports." The New England Patriots have already jumped aboard with the Massachusetts State Lottery.

+ Owners discussed possibly expanding the Rooney Rule, which requires teams interview at least one minority candidate for coaching positions, to include general managers.

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The NFL owners officially began their spring meeting at the Ritz-Carlton in Fort Lauderdale this morning and the league announced it has reached agreement with Comcast to ensure NFL Network is available to more viewers.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the agreement ends the outstanding legal disputes and means the 24-hour all-football network will continue be available to Comcast’s Digital Classic Cable customers, rather than moving to the higher-tier Sports Entertainment package. That means the network will be available in 10.8 million homes, up from 2 million.

“We are delighted to have come to an agreement with the NFL,” Comcast Corp. Chairman and CEO Brian L. Roberts said in a statement. “Our goal has always been to provide our digital customers with access to the NFL’s unique content and, working together, we have struck the right balance between value and distribution on a variety of viewing platforms. We are looking forward to bringing the NFL’s programming to our customers just in time for the start of the NFL season.”

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement the league looks forward to having coverage of training camps and preseason included on Comcast.

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Wilson Sporting Goods has produced the official football of the NFL since 1941. Now you can buy Wilson golf bags in NFL team colors featuring team logos.

The bags come in cart and carry versions and are selling for $199.99 and $159.99 respectively. They’re available for all 32 NFL teams.

“As a nearly century-old American brand, Wilson Sporting Goods Co. has a rich history in both football and golf and a strong connection to fans across the sports spectrum,” Wilson Golf General Manager Tim Clarke said in a statement. “The partnership of Wilson Golf and the NFL is a natural fit and we’re thrilled to offer the official logoed bag to devoted NFL fans.”

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NFL, South Florida Super Bowl XLIV Host Committee and Dolphin Stadium officials officially unveiled the logos for next year’s Super Bowl and Pro Bowl on Wednesday.

They also announced the “Your Seat, Your Price” program that allows Dolphins season ticket holders to lock in the same seats they have during the season for the 2010 Pro Bowl at the same regular season price. Those tickets are to go on sale in July. Regular Pro Bowl subscribers (yes, apparently there are people who buy tickets to the Pro Bowl in Hawaii every year) also get priority. After that, the general public can buy tickets, starting in October, but anyone seeking tickets should register their interest now at miamidolphins.com/2010ProBowl.

Tickets for the general public are only expected to be slightly more than the Dolphins regular season price with most seats selling for less than $100, NFL Senior Vice President of Special Events Frank Supovitz said. The idea, he said, is to try to attract as many fans as possible, who might otherwise be shut out from the Super Bowl.

“There will be some people who will be lucky enough to score tickets to both, but by and large, it will be two different audiences,” said Supovitz, who was sporting a Super Bowl XLI tie honoring the last Super Bowl in South Florida in 2007. “The Super Bowl is a higher priced ticket, the Pro Bowl really is meant to be open to everyone, the whole idea was to bring more fans to the Pro Bowl and more fans to the stadium than we’ve ever been able to do.”

Next year, the Pro Bowl is being held Jan. 31 at Dolphin Stadium – marking the first time it’s being held outside of Hawaii since 1979 – a week before the Super Bowl, which we be played at the Miami Gardens venue on Feb. 7. The game will move back to Hawaii in 2011 and 2012. The game is expected to have a regular presence in Hawaii, but also could move to other cities in the continental United States, Supovitz said.

Pairing the two games together and holding the Pro Bowl before the Super Bowl, Supovitz said, will provide the community with a longer period of football and festivities.

“Our hope is to capture the fervor and the passion of the football fan, while it’s still at its height,” Supovitz said.

He said the Super Bowl attracts as many as 150,000 visitors who pump $350 million to $500 million into the host community’s economy. He said he does not know the economic impact of the Pro Bowl, but it is expected to draw more local fans.

Other changes planned for next year’s events include an area called “NFL Plaza,” which will replace the NFL Experience theme park area just next year. The Plaza will be open on Pro Bowl Sunday and will serve as a gathering area for activities, merchandise sales and stadium tours. Supovitz said with the Super Bowl last in South Florida in 2007, the league wanted to provide different types of activities. Next year will be South Florida’s record-breaking 10th time hosting the Super Bowl.

The NFL Flag National Championship will be moved to January and South Florida – from November at DisneyWorld -- during the festivities with the winners among the 9- to 14-year-old players being honored on the field during the Pro Bowl. The region will also host Super Bowl Saturday Night – an event started in Arizona two years ago. The free night of football, fireworks and music is expected to attract tens of thousands of fans. The location has not yet been announced.

South Florida is competing against New Orleans and Arizona to host the 2013 Super Bowl. NFL owners will make a decision later this month.

But don’t expect a Super Bowl in London anytime soon, despite a number of reports. Supovitz said conversations have taken place with London officials about the bidding process, but nothing more.

“That’s where discussions began and ended,” he said. “We’ve had discussions with them. Nobody’s set any timetable. Nobody’s set any objectives to bring a game there anytime in a specific year. There’s been a lot reported there has been. None of those conversations have happened.”

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Fort Lauderdale-based CBSSports.com scored a victory this week when a federal judge in Minneapolis ruled CBS Interactive does not have to pay to use NFL players’ names and statistics in its fantasy football games.

U.S. District Judge Ann Montgomery said in her April 28 ruling the names and stats are protected by the First Amendment. Her ruling follows an earlier federal appeals court decision that said baseball players’ names and stats are in the public domain. Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear that case. Montgomery said the ruling applies to football as well.

“The court declines to indulge in a philosophical debate about whether the public is more fascinated with baseball or football,” Montgomery wrote in her ruling.

“CBS is pleased that the court confirmed the use of player names, statistics and other materials in CBS’ online fantasy games is protected under the First Amendment,” CBSSports.com’s General Manager Jason Kint said in a statement. “CBSSports.com, along with the rest of the fantasy sports industry, looks forward to continuing to provide the fun and excitement of fantasy sports.”

The baseball case began in 2005, when a fantasy baseball game provider sued Major League Baseball seeking the right to use player statistics without a license. The district ruled the First Amendment applied to the information. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed.

CBSSports.com took the ruling in the baseball case to apply across sports, and even added college players’ names to its college fantasy football game. When its agreement to pay for the use of NFL players stats expired in February 2008, the company declined to renew.

The players’ union threatened to sue, but CBS struck first, filing suit against the NFL Players Association Sept. 3 in Minnesota, where the baseball case had been decided. Players Inc., the marketing arm of the players union, counter-sued Sept. 9 in Florida, where CBSSports.com is based. The Florida case was stayed until a decision could be made in Minnesota.

“We are evaluating the decision now and we haven’t determined what our next steps are going to be,” Jeffrey Kessler, an attorney representing the players, said Thursday.

The union clearly thought a different district court might rule differently and chose Florida because of where CBSSports.com is based.

Where the sports leagues and their players unions have supported the notion the players’ identities require licensing, the fantasy sports providers have lined up squarely against the need to pay licensing fees. Those providers have to be rejoicing: the fantasy sports industry counts some 27 million players in the United States, who spend an estimated $800 million annually on magazines, draft boards and Web site game subscriptions.

“This victory further cements the autonomy of fantasy sports operators from sports leagues and player unions,” newly-elected Fantasy Sports Trade Association President Paul Charchian said in a statement. “The ruling ensures that the industry’s hundreds of fantasy companies will continue creating wide ranging products to serve the needs of fantasy players."

According to an FSTA release, Charchian and Glenn Colton, a New York lawyer who filed friend of the court briefs on behalf of the FSTA in the baseball case, both said they hoped the fantasy sports industry and leagues and players' associations could work together.

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In honor of tomorrow’s 2009 NFL Draft, enjoy Pittsburgh Post-Gazette columnist Gene Collier’s appearance on a Pittsburgh radio show discussing how a group of sports writers passed the time at one draft a decade ago. Thanks to SportsBusinessDaily for sharing this gem:

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Next year’s Super Bowl is 289 days away, but the South Florida Super Bowl Host Committee is preparing small businesses for work related to the game and its accompanying events, recruiting volunteers, and … planting trees.

This week, representatives of the NFL, Florida Division of Forestry, the Dolphins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, tourism and host committee officials and representatives of seven cities across the state have been planting slash pine trees. In Tampa, Lakeland, Sebring, Belle Glade, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale and on Friday in Miami Gardens, tree planting ceremonies have been held to mark the Super Bowl’s “Trail of Trees.” The idea is to connect the site of this year’s Super Bowl – Tampa – with next year’s in South Florida.

“These tree plantings will symbolize a passing of the environmental mantle from one host community to the next and will mark the final environmental project of Super Bowl XLIII and the first environmental project for Super Bowl XLIV,” according to a release from the host committee.

Super Bowl XLIV is scheduled on Feb. 7, 2010 at Dolphin Stadium. The Pro Bowl will be played at the stadium a week before.

More than 20,000 trees have been planted during the past five years in a partnership between the league and the U.S. Forest Service. The league is trying to reduce its carbon footprint in Super Bowl host communities through recycling, using alternative fuels, and other efforts. The league has planted nearly 2,000 trees in all in Tampa this year.

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NFL officials have been in South Florida this week planning for the next year’s double dose of the Pro Bowl and Super Bowl at Dolphin Stadium. Event architects and planning teams held meetings, dropped in on the stadium and scouted venues to use for next year’s accompanying events, said Frank Supovitz, NFL senior vice president of special events.

Meanwhile, South Florida officials are submitting a bid today for the 2013 game, along with New Orleans and Phoenix. Preliminary applications are due today with a decision by NFL owners expected during their May 18-20 meeting in Fort Lauderdale.

"We truly believe as a host city, Dade, Broward and Palm Beach county, we have so much to offer, with respect to hotels, restaurants, golf courses, beaches, weather. It’s kind of hard to beat, said South Florida Super Bowl Host Committee Chairman Rodney Barreto.

In the interest of spreading the game around, however, New Orleans might be difficult to beat. The city, which along with South Florida has held the game a record nine times, has not hosted the game since 2002, before Hurricane Katrina. South Florida, which hosted the 2007 game, will top the list of times hosting with 10 when Super Bowl XLIV is scheduled for Dolphin Stadium on Feb. 7, 2010. The game was in Phoenix in 2008.

Of course, there are no guarantees when it comes to the Super Bowl. South Florida was awarded the 2010 game before the 2007 game was even played, after an agreement to hold the game in New York was abandoned after plans for a new football stadium in Manhattan fell through.

Former Dolphins owner H. Wayne Huizenga had hoped the Super Bowl would be played in South Florida on a regular basis every few years. New team owner Stephen Ross said he shares that sentiment. Bid packages for the 2014 game are expected to be released in November, Supovitz said.

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New Dolphins owner Stephen Ross is giving a lot of thought to the ambience at Dolphin Stadium during Dolphin games next season.

“I’m very happy to be the new owner, hopefully you’ll see a lot of new things next year,” said Ross during an appearance to promote the Fin Cup, a new Pro-Am featuring current and former Dolphins players that took place Monday at the Honda Classic at PGA National. “I dream at night about things of how we can really increase the fan experience. And It’s a real privilege to do that.”

But Ross wasn’t giving any hints as to what changes or improvements he might make.

“It’s a little premature to talk about the things we’re planning,” he said, instead encouraging fans to attend games in 2009. “I just say come to the first games and I think you’ll see a little bit of a difference. I don’t want to really telegraph anything at this point, we’re working on it.”

Ross said the main reason fans attend is to see their team win, but he wants to make the game day experience an attraction as well.

“I think just making that experience a little better for the fans and a little more exciting, much like the Los Angeles Lakers, what they are. I think South Florida has a lot of opportunities to do things so I want to really increase that.”

Ross said he has turned for advice to former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue. The two know each other because Ross serves on the board of the Levin Institute, a school for global education and business, where Tagliabue serves as chairman. But Ross insisted Tagliabue will not join the Dolphins “executive ranks.”

“The opportunity I have to call upon him is something I would be a fool not to take advantage of,” Ross said.

And when it comes to his stadium’s other tenants, the Marlins and University of Miami football team, Ross is watching the Marlins ballpark proceedings. Ross seems to be indicating he’s willing to extend the Marlins’ lease beyond its 2010 expiration, but hopes the team is able to move into a new home in 2012.

“I’d like to believe 2011 will be their last year at the stadium,” Ross said.

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H. Wayne Huizenga bid farewell Tuesday to nearly two decades of sports team ownership, including 19 years with his favorite team, the Dolphins.

When he completed the sale of the Dolphins to New York real estate developer Stephen Ross last month, Huizenga’s remarkable tenure owning three professional sports franchises - including two expansion teams that took the field and ice within six months of each other - came to an end.

His biggest regret: that his Dolphins didn’t win a Super Bowl. He also said in hindsight perhaps he should have waited a year to dismantle the Marlins after they won the 1997 World Series.

He oversaw a tumultuous period, bringing South Florida into the major leagues: owning three teams and taking two of them to their sport’s championship, investing in a regional sports network, selling naming rights to a stadium, and overseeing the construction of a 20,000-seat arena. It was a period the likes of which will never been seen again. If you’re interested in reading a longer view of Huizenga’s tenure in sports, click here.

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Just as broadcasters and columnists have been bashing tonight’s Arizona Cardinals-Pittsburgh Steelers matchup in Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, veteran sports marketing expert Bob Dorfman isn’t seeing a lot of Madison Avenue power in the players either.

In his annual Super Bowl Sports Marketers’ Scouting Report, Dorfman, who is executive vice president at San Francisco’s Baker Street Advertising, puts only Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger in the “touchdown” category of marketability.

“Though he lacks Peyton Manning’s charm and Tom Brady’s glam, Big Ben has a rugged, blue-collar appeal that matches well with any product that gets a tough job done without a lot of flash or hoopla—like power tools, trucks, deodorants, or cold and flu remedies,” Dorfman wrote.

Excedrin or Advil since he recently suffered a concussion, Dorfman suggests.

“And though a “Roethlis-burger” has been served in various Pittsburgh area joints, it may be time to take it national via McDonald’s or Burger King. In just his fifth year in the NFL, there’s no ceiling on Big Ben’s football—and marketing—future,” Dorfman said.

He gives “field goal” status to Cardinals QB quarterback Kurt Warner; Steelers safety Troy Polamalu and Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald.

“Warner’s rags-to-riches story—from supermarket to Super Bowl—would make a fine biopic, his large family would fit well in a minivan campaign, and his good looks could work handsomely for any men’s grooming product,” Dorfman wrote. “At 37, he may not be the best choice to appeal to the coveted “male 18-34” demographic, but for more mature audiences, Warner could be an effective pitchman—especially if he can lead his Cardinals to an upset win on Super Sunday.”

If you’ve been following the pre-Super Bowl advertising hype, you already know that Polamalu is featured in a Coke Zero remake – of sorts – of Coke’s famous Mean Joe Greene spot to air during the big game. Yes, the spot was made long before it was known Polamalu would be playing in the game.

“Intense on the field, soft-spoken off, Troy’s trademark flowing locks belong in a Pert shampoo ad. And the way he flies all over the field could qualify him for an American Airlines commercial, or a Dodge “Ram Tough” truck ad,” Dorfman said.

And then he asks, “And wouldn’t you love to see Polamalu and Larry Fitzgerald together in an ad, getting hairstyle makeovers from Paul Mitchell?”

More hair spots for Fitzgerald, Dorfman says. “Fitzgerald’s signature dreads could make a compelling hair care demo, his great smile could sell Crest toothpaste, and his good hands could score big for Allstate. T-Mobile might even consider replacing Charles Barkley with Fitzgerald in their “Fave 5” campaign. How about a spot with T.O. trying to make it onto Larry’s shortlist?”

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NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell gave his annual Super Bowl address in Tampa on Friday, where among other things, he got a chance to praise outgoing Dolphins owner H. Wayne Huizenga. Huizenga completed his $1.1 billion sale of the Dolphins and Dolphin Stadium to New York real estate developer Stephen M. Ross last week.

Huizenga first invested in the Dolphins and the stadium in 1990 and became majority owner in 1994. He is maintaining a 5 percent stake in the team and stadium.

“Wayne has been a terrific owner for the NFL, the Miami Dolphins and that community, not only in football but in multiple sports,” Goodell said acknowledging Huizenga’s previous tenures as owner of the Marlins and Panthers. “I think he's had a huge impact in the Miami area. He’s had a great impact on me personally as well. He's one of those smart guys who knows how to get to the bottom of a problem pretty quick. He’s not afraid to give you his opinion, and he's done that from time to time with me. I think that’s helpful. I think the ownership will miss him at that level.”

Goodell had praise for Ross, too: “On the other hand, in typical fashion, [Huizenga’s] left the franchise in good hands. Steve Ross is a terrific man. He’s a very successful businessman and he’s spent the last year or so learning the business from Wayne. He has good people who he has surrounded himself with and I think that’s the key to everything – surround yourself with good people and put them in a position where they can make the decisions and ultimately, you’ll have a successful franchise.”

Goodell was also asked about the Pro Bowl being moved from Hawaii, where it’s been held since 1980, to South Florida a week before the Super Bowl XLIV next year. Goodell said he expects the game to be on something of a rotation, which will include Hawaii again in the future.

“What we thought, though, would be a very interesting alternative would be to play the game as part of the lead up to the Super Bowl. So we’ll be playing it on Sunday night in Miami in advance of the Super Bowl. That will bring more interest, clearly. It will bring more exposure for our great players, and we think be a positive,” Goodell said.

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And your mom told you to stop playing video games.

Now comes a study from the EA Sports and the University of Oregon’s Warsaw Sports Marketing Center, that says playing Madden makes you smarter.

Smarter about football, anyway.

According to the survey of 15,000 NFL fans and Madden players, those that play Madden are 60 percent more knowledgeable about the NFL than those who don’t play.

Madden players got the answers to 22 of 36 questions correct, compared with only 14 by the non-Madden players.

Is there a better marketing tool for EA and its Madden franchise, now celebrating its 20th year, and the NFL? EA’s challenge is to convince more NFL fans to buy video game consoles.

“We’re making better fans,” EA Sports President Peter Moore said. “We deepen their knowledge.”

That, Moore says, should be good for the NFL: “They’re more likely to buy merchandise, more likely to buy NFL Sunday Ticket.”

Madden Bowl XV is being played in Tampa this evening.

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Dolphins owner H. Wayne Huizenga was serious about wanting to sell his majority share of the team to co-owner Stephen Ross before Barack Obama became president.

Granted the sale didn’t take place during 2008, which means if capital gains taxes do increase this year, Huizenga is likely to be socked with a higher bill. But from what I’m being told, the deal to sell the additional 45 percent of the Dolphins and Dolphin Stadium was signed before Obama took the oath of office this afternoon.

Ross now owns 95 percent of the team and the stadium and 50 percent of the surrounding land. Huizenga, who maintains his attachment to the team calling the sale “bittersweet,” is hanging onto 5 percent of the team and stadium and half the land. Total value of the deal: $1.1 billion.

But with Tuesday’s deal, Huizenga gave up his last majority ownership in a South Florida sports franchise. In the 1990s, Huizenga owned three teams: the Dolphins, Marlins and Panthers. Huizenga brought both baseball and hockey to the region.

Tuesday began a new era. That wasn’t lost in Ross, a New York real estate developer and part-time Palm Beach resident.

“The United States is entering into a new climate, a new opportunity,” Ross said when asked about the sale being completed the same day Obama took office. “And I saw myself, being able to enter into a new opportunity for me that was very exciting, and I’ve always dreamt of.”

Ross wouldn't discuss the financial structure of the deal, but sources say Huizenga is holding a note on the transaction and allowing Ross to owe him a portion of the balance. He says he has been pursuing investors to buy a stake in the team.

"I always wanted to have a few people join me. And in these times, no one has joined me at this point in time," Ross said adding he is still talking with a few potential investors.

Ross didn’t reveal much about how he intends to run the Dolphins, other than he hopes to build on Huizenga’s legacy. He vowed not to increase ticket prices next season, saying now, in a struggling economy, was not the time to raise prices.

He said he plans to alter the game-day experience, but he didn't offer any details. He’ll examine the stadium and business side of the operation and the possibility for additional renovations or development, he said.

“We’re really looking into all of that and seeing the pricing of all of that and how we might put that together, but I’m examining every aspect of the business,” Ross said.

He said he never intended to offer a job to friend and former Kansas City Chiefs general manager Carl Peterson, who Ross invited to join him at the Dolphins-Baltimore Ravens playoff game.

He is still talking about former USTA CEO Arlen Kantarian possibly joining the team as a business side executive, but “there is no deal.”

And he offered some welcome news to those of us still in the newspaper business:

“When you love a sport which I do, I love all sports and am constantly reading the sports pages,” he said. “Even today, when I read the paper and I read a couple of them, the first section I go to is the sports section. You can’t get that out of your system no matter what you’re doing. I was brought up always wanting to be involved with sports, it’s always a dream. Since I wasn’t going to make it as a player, it was a dream to become an owner.”

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A record-breaking and energized crowd of 74,240 attended Sunday’s Dolphins-Baltimore Ravens first-round playoff game at Dolphin Stadium, many decked in aqua and orange and swelled with a pride for their team they hadn’t felt in years.

The Dolphins had a remarkable and historic turnaround on the field going from an NFL-worst 1-15 in 2007 to AFC East Division champion with an 11-5 regular season record this year, before losing to the Ravens 27-9.

Off the field they’ve made strides, too.

According to the NFL, the team ranks just below the top 10 in merchandise sales on NFLShop.com and saw sales rise almost 75 percent in 2008 compared with the previous year.

In addition, Ronnie Brown’s jersey was in the top 30 and Chad Pennington’s made the top 50. The NFL will only release the top 10 teams and top 25 jerseys. See the full list of teams and jerseys below.

Meanwhile, team officials say new season ticket sales are better than ever. Sales of season tickets fell to approximately 50,000 this season, down from 54,465 in 2007 and 61,121 in 2006. Team officials wouldn’t release specific numbers, but are pleased with progress they see already.

“All the indicators are very positive,” said Scott Loft, Dolphins vice president of ticket sales and service. “Our deposits are way higher than they have been in the recent past for new season ticket holders.”

The team has been accepting $100 per seat deposits for new season tickets since early December, as a way to offer fans priority behind current season ticket holders for seating, but ahead of individual ticket buyers. They also got playoff priority before the general public. “The number is higher than it has been certainly in this decade for new deposits year over year,” Loft said.

Loft said a decision about ticket prices for next season has not been determined. Renewal notices will go out around Feb. 1.

Here are the NFL’s rankings for team and jersey sales between April 1 and Dec. 31 at NFLShop.com:

TOP 10 SELLING TEAMS MERCHANDISE

1 Dallas Cowboys
2 New York Giants
3 Pittsburgh Steelers
4 New York Jets
5 Chicago Bears
6 New England Patriots
7 Washington Redskins
8 Philadelphia Eagles
9 Green Bay Packers
10 Indianapolis Colts

TOP-SELLING NFL PLAYER JERSEYS

1 Brett Favre, New York Jets
2 Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
3 Eli Manning, New York Giants
4 Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steelers
5 Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
6 Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
7 Marion Barber, Dallas Cowboys
8 Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
9 LaDainian Tomlinson, S.D. Chargers
10 Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
11 Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
12 Tom Brady, New England Patriots
13 Terrell Owens, Dallas Cowboys
14 Brian Urlacher, Chicago Bears
15 Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
16 Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants
17 Jay Cutler, Denver Broncos
18 Hines Ward, Pittsburgh Steelers
19 Devin Hester, Chicago Bears
20 DeMarcus Ware, Dallas Cowboys
21 Randy Moss, New England Patriots
22 Chris Cooley, Washington Redskins
23 Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens
24 Matt Forte, Chicago Bears
25 Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints

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Dolphin Stadium has joined the “green movement” – with the help of Waste Management, which added automated recycling machines at the stadium and gave out tips for preserving the environment at the Dolphins' last home game of the season.

Now, StubHub is using the Dolphins’ first playoff game in seven years to help plant trees in the country’s national forests. For every ticket Dolphins-Baltimore Ravens ticket re-sold on StubHub.com (tickets are still available for the 1 p.m. Sunday game from $82 to $2,000), the online ticket marketplace will plant a tree in the National Forests of Florida. The company’s “Tickets for Trees” program will also plant one tree for every dollar donated to the National Forest Foundation in the name of the Dolphins.

The National Forests of Florida include nearly 1.2 million acres in the Apalachicola, Ocala and Osceola national forests. StubHub is donating trees in honor of each of the teams hosting playoff games through the postseason and to the Ocala National Forest for Super Bowl XLIII, which is being played in Tampa.

StubHub expects to plant tens of thousands of trees – the type will be determined by the National Forest Foundation, spokeswoman Joellen Ferrer said. She said several thousand will be planted in honor of the Dolphins based on tickets sold and donations made. The company will not release specific figures until after the Super Bowl, she said.

“We are excited to involve our fans in this campaign to help restore the country’s National Forests,” Ferrer said. “Assuming all goes well, we plan to expand this program and continue StubHub Tickets for Trees based around other events.”

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While Orange Bowl Committee members are pulling double duty, serving as ambassadors for tonight’s 75th annual FedEx Orange Bowl and next Thursday’s BCS National Championship Game, some people – and places -- are doing triple duty.

The Dolphin Stadium grounds crew, for example, is preparing for three big games – now that the Dolphins have made the playoffs for the first time since the 2001 season – two bowl games with an NFL playoff game in the middle. That hasn't happened since the BCS added a fifth game to the rotation three years ago.

As soon as tonight’s game between Cincinnati and Virginia Tech is completed, workers will begin cutting out the logos at the center of the field and the endzones for new pieces of sod that will then be painted with Dolphins and NFL playoffs logos in advance of Sunday’s 1 p.m. Dolphins-Baltimore Ravens game. After Sunday’s game, the same process – which takes up to 12 hours – will occur again in advance of the BCS game featuring Florida and Oklahoma.

Stadium President Bruce Schulze calls hosting the three games “pleasant challenges.” After all, the stadium had some practice this fall hosting the UM Hurricanes for their first season since moving from the Orange Bowl.

“We got so good at doing it during the Dolphins and UM seasons,” Schulze said.

Meanwhile, the Marriott Harbor Beach in Fort Lauderdale is the host hotel for the Orange Bowl and BCS games and it will also play host to the Ravens.

Tourism officials are hoping Ravens fans will join the visitors here this week for the bowl games.

“Baltimore has a great reputation for traveling with their teams,” Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau President Nicki Grossman said.

The CVB has been promoting the region in Cincinnati, Virginia and Oklahoma, she said.

The three games have also provided an active secondary market for tickets. Tickets to the Orange Bowl are still listed for re-sale, although not for as little as $6 as some were selling for last month.

“There’s definitely a lot of activity down there,” said Scott Roback, vice president of business development for RazorGator, which serves as the official ticket exchange site for the OB and BCS games. But Roback said, the Dolphins game “is not the highest demand playoff ticket. That being said, there’s still a secondary market for tickets.”

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The NFL made it official Tuesday that the Pro Bowl will move a week before the Super Bowl and be played at Dolphin Stadium in 2010. Future sites for the game, which has been held in Honolulu since 1980, have not been determined, but the intention is for it to be played in Hawaii on a rotating basis, the league said. Read the Dolphins news release about the move here.

“We are looking at alternatives to strengthen the Pro Bowl,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “We will continue to work with the players to make it a great event and will evaluate the concept after the 2010 Pro Bowl.”

The 2010 game will be held at 8 p.m. Jan. 31 and will be broadcast on ESPN. Super Bowl XLIV will be held a week later on Jan. 7, also at Dolphin Stadium. The idea of moving the game from Hawaii and holding it before -- rather than after -- the Super Bowl has been contemplated by the league for a couple of years.

“Taking the Pro Bowl to new locations can showcase our top players to more fans around the country," NFL Senior Vice President of Events Frank Supovitz said in a statement. "We are also in discussions with key leaders in Hawaii to continue our partnership with the State of Hawaii, which has embraced the Pro Bowl for 30 years.”

South Florida tourism officials were asked to prepare for the possibility of the game moving, by lining up hotels and other accommodations. They say the game could pump another $150 million into local businesses on top of the economic impact from hosting the Super Bowl.

The Pro Bowl’s annual ticket subscribers, Dolphins season ticket-holders and members of the public will have a chance to purchase tickets. Would you want to attend?

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The NFL hasn’t officially announced the Pro Bowl will move a week before the Super Bowl and to South Florida from Honolulu in 2010, but tourism officials say they’ve been told to plan for the possibility.

The Associated Press reported the news Monday. The NFL, which has a contract to play in Hawaii through the 2009 game, said the decision hadn’t been made yet.

"Plans for future Pro Bowls are not final, but we have stated publicly several times that we are giving strong consideration to moving the Pro Bowl to the week before the Super Bowl,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said. “We also have been exploring playing future Pro Bowls at the site of the Super Bowl as well as in Honolulu, host of the Pro Bowl since 1980.”

With South Florida already gearing up to host its 10th Super Bowl in 2010, the possibility of a Pro Bowl at Dolphin Stadium, too, is welcome news. Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau President Nicki Grossman said the Pro Bowl could mean an additional $150 million for local businesses on top of the impact from the Super Bowl.

“We were told to prepare to have venues and hotels available for a first-ever since 1980 move out of Hawaii by the Pro Bowl. We are ready, willing, able, excited and determined to make this a spectacular two weeks of great football in South Florida,” Grossman said. “We have huge beach shoes to fill. Hawaii has been a consummate host. We’ve got a go a long way to go to match that experience, but we are certainly a place that can do that.”

Grossman called the idea of NFL converging on South Florida for both events, “an opportunity to take a one-week spectacular and turn it into a two-week spectacular.”

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Tickets for the Dolphins’ first playoff game since the 2001 season go on sale at 9 a.m. Monday. Will you be buying them?

The last two times the Dolphins hosted first-round playoff games (in the 2001 season against next Sunday’s opponent, the Baltimore Ravens, and in the 2000 season against the Indianapolis Colts), the games didn’t sell out in time to lift the local television blackout. The match-ups sold out on game day, but those who didn’t purchase tickets had to listen to the radio broadcast or drive far enough outside the 75-mile radius around Dolphin Stadium to find the game on TV.

According to the NFL's blackout policy, games must sell out 72 hours in advance or they can't be aired on stations with signals that penetrate within 75 miles of the game. Federal copyright laws prohibit local sports bars with satellite dishes from showing the game.

Times are vastly different now. It’s been a long time since the Dolphins were in the playoffs and they’ve also made history by winning 11 games – and their division -- after winning just one game last season (against the Ravens, by the way).

Is the playoff drought and the team’s remarkable turnaround enough to convince you to buy tickets? Or is the economy just too tough to make the investment? Or are there other reasons you’re planning to skip this one?

Playoff ticket prices have been rolled back. They start at $46 for next Sunday's game. Tickets to the playoffs in the 2001 season started at $57.

The team must sell 62,133 general seats in the upper and lower decks (excluding suites and club seats) at 75,540-seat Dolphin Stadium to avoid a blackout. Back in 2001, season ticket holders bought nearly 58,000 tickets during the season. This year, the team hasn’t officially released the number of season tickets sold, but it is fewer than 50,000.

The Dolphins host the Ravens at 1 p.m. Sunday. Tickets go on sale at 9 a.m. Monday at Gate F at Dolphin Stadium, online at miamidolphins.com or through Ticketmaster at 800-745-3000.

Fans who attend the game will receive a rally towel. And just in case you were wondering, there’s already AFC East Championship gear available for sale at the Dolphins Pro Shop.

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The Indianapolis Colts closed out their first regular season at Lucas Oil Stadium this afternoon. The stadium offers an example of how teams are working to generate more dollars from sponsors while giving companies more real estate and fans more things to do inside sports venues.

Sponsors don’t just get signage anymore. That’s been true for some time, but in Indianapolis, companies’ names are connected to an actual section of Lucas Oil Stadium. The companies work with the Colts to decorate and program the areas to maximize their businesses and entertainment for fans.

There’s the Lucas Oil Gate, naturally, the Huntington Bank Gate, the hhgregg Gate and so on. The Air Tran Food Court features a first class fuselage that people can sit in. The team’s five- to eight-year sponsor contracts are worth $10 million to $12 million annually.

“We are considered a small market NFL team so a new stadium was critical for us. Based on the way the economics of the National Football League work today, we needed a stadium that was going to drive revenue,” said Peter Ward, Colts senior executive vice president. “This helps us stay competitive on the field...This allows us the opportunity to maximize our revenue.”

At the Lucas Oil Gate, there are dragsters; old-fashioned gas pumps that have LCD TVs installed in them; over-sized oil cans that also serve as stations for TVs; planes that hang from the ceiling; and a horseshoe-shaped stage for bands and TV and radio shows.

“Our goal was to create areas that could be sponsored and themed that also create points of interest for the fans. It had to work for the sponsors as well as our fans,” Ward said.

Hhgregg, a TV and appliance retailer with stores in nine states including Florida, has a 26,000-square-foot interactive fan area at the stadium’s south entrance with flat screen TVs, digital cameras and even washers and dryers on display. There’s an interactive video game in which fans can throw or kick a football across a virtual screen designed to look like Lucas Oil Stadium.

There are also six 52-inch Samsung TVs, a seating area in the shape of a horseshoe, and poles that look like goalposts. There’s a product pavilion with Electrolux appliances, including refrigerators. Everything is wrapped in hhgreg signage, but there's also signage for Electrolux, Sony and other appliance brands.

In addition, the Colts’ official appliance retailer of flat panel TVs, has sales associates working the gate entrances, handing out coupons.

“We’ve had a long-standing partnership with the Colts,” said Jeff Pearson, hhgregg vice president of marketing. “We sell a large number of flat panel TVs. All of that helps us sell TVs … Lucas Oil Stadium is going to be a place a lot of people go through in the next number of years.”

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Can’t score tickets to the BCS National Championship game between Florida and Oklahoma on Jan. 8 at Dolphin Stadium, but want something more that just to sit in front of your TV?

Fox is producing a 3-D broadcast of the game that is to be shown live in 80 theaters, which have been equipped with the new technology, in 35 states across the country. Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. and 3ality Digital's 3-D image-capture technology are working with Fox on the production. Tickets are expected to run $18 to $22.

On Dec. 4, 3ality Digital worked with the NFL to broadcast the Oakland Raiders and the San Diego Chargers game to invited guests at theaters in three markets – Boston, New York and Los Angeles. Although it wasn’t perfect, it reportedly got generally good reviews. Cinedigm and Turner Sports have reached agreement to broadcast the NBA’s All-Star Saturday night festivities from Phoenix in theaters in 3-D on Feb. 14.

For the BCS game, the closest theater to South Florida scheduled to carry the broadcast is the Rave Port St. Lucie.

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What a difference a lousy year makes.

Turnkey Sports & Entertainment released the results of its second annual Team Brand Index survey last week of all 122 NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL teams. The survey, which is purchased by teams and sponsors, measures the brand strength of each team based on the perceptions of fans in those markets.

The company surveyed 12,000 sports fans in 47 U.S. and Canadian markets on their perceptions of the team’s entertainment value, players, ownership and other factors. All four of South Florida’s teams fell in fans’ estimation between the 2007 and 2008 studies, especially the Heat, which was ahead of the Dolphins in the 2007 study. Here’s where the teams rank among the 122 in this year’s survey compared to last year:

Team 2008 rank; 2007 rank
Dolphins: 55; 42
Heat: 65; 33
Marlins: 78; 70
Panthers: 103; 99

THE TOP 5
Green Bay Packers
Boston Red Sox
Pittsburgh Steelers
New England Patriots
Indianapolis Colts

THE BOTTOM 5
New York Islanders
Indiana Pacers
New Jersey Nets
New York Knicks
Seattle SuperSonics*

*The survey was conducted before the SuperSonics moved this season to Oklahoma City

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The Panthers wouldn’t say how many tickets were sold at discounts of 30 percent to 50 percent during their one-day sale from midnight Thursday to midnight Friday, other than it was one of the team’s most successful selling days in the past few years.

Around pro sports, Black Friday was a good day.

The NFL recorded an 85 percent increase in sales at NFLShop.com on Black Friday compared to 2007, making the day the league’s third highest grossing sales day. The biggest day was yesterday (Thanksgiving Sunday), followed by Thanksgiving Sunday in 2007.

The best sellers since Thanksgiving? Brett Favre’s replica men’s green jersey and youth green jersey, followed by Giants-custom hooded sweatshirts and Eli Manning’s replica men’s blue jersey.

Meanwhile, the NBA said its online store recorded its best Black Friday sales ever, more than doubling last year’s figures. Sales at NBAStore.com were up 95 percent for the full weekend. Together, sales at the online store and at the NBA Store in Manhattan rose a combined 38 percent from last year.

Chris Paul’s jersey was the top seller over the weekend, followed by NBA team logoed T-shirts.

And the league kicked off a 12 days of deals promotion at NBAStore.com today. A new discount will be announced each day.

MLB.com, which sold select jerseys at 40 percent off, said sales were up 25 percent compared with 2007.

The NHL said sales at Shop.NHL.com were up 67 percent on Black Friday compared to 2007 and that sales were up 25 percent from a year ago on Cyber Monday. For the full weekend sales rose more than 10 percent from 2007 at the NHL Store in Manhattan.

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Turns out that rapid Super Bowl ad buying recorded in September has slowed down significantly. NBC says it has eight 30-second spots still available during Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa on Feb. 1.

NBC, broadcaster of the 2009 game, says about 59 spots during the game have been spoken for and are running about $3 million each. That’s up from about $2.7 million last year. But the company also told the Associated Press it is negotiations for the remaining spots.

Regular Super Bowl advertiser General Motors announced in September it would skip the Super Bowl. FedEx Corp., Garmin Ltd. And Salesgenie.com are also not buying ads this time.

Monster Worldwide, however, which hasn’t bought an ad since the 2004, game will be back and competing with ads from CareerBuilder.com. Probably not a bad spend, given how many people have lost their jobs and are looking for work.

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Stephen Ross says Dolphins Managing General Partner H. Wayne Huizenga “has nothing to worry about” when it comes to the eventual transfer of another 45 percent of the Dolphins.

Ross said he’s able to complete the purchase, which would give him 95 percent of the team, but he and Huizenga are still discussing when it will occur.

Before Tuesday’s presidential election, Huizenga made it clear he’d like to sell soon to avoid increased capital gains taxes in a Barack Obama administration. A sale before the end of the calendar year could ensure that, but Ross is thinking about the postseason.

“I’m not sure, because we could make the playoffs,” Ross said with a hopeful chuckle before Sunday’s Dolphins-Seattle Seahawks game at Dolphin Stadium. “At some point I will be taking it. Wayne and I are discussing exactly when that is. I assume it will be sometime before next season.”

Earlier this year, Ross bought 50 percent of the team, stadium and surrounding land for $550 million, with the intention he’d eventually become majority owner. Last month, NFL owners approved the eventual transfer, meaning it can take place any time.

Ross says he can complete the purchase without financial help, but does plan to bring in investors at some point.

“We’re talking to some and I want to make sure I have the right mix,” Ross said. “I will own well in excess of 50 percent but always intended to bring in some investors. The question in when they come in.”

Any investors would need league approval.

Ross praised his partnership with Huizenga, who will maintain 5 percent of the team.

“We have an agreement, we get along great. We have a great partnership and all Wayne’s needs will be accommodated as well as mine,” he said.

He also says he’s pleased to have joined the NFL ownership ranks, even sharing a sports cliché: “You’re always antsy before the game, a little bit on edge. These games are important now, we’ve got a certain momentum. You want to continue on. You’ve got to take each game one game at a time.”

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Dolphins owner H. Wayne Huizenga’s concern that Barack Obama will raise capital-gains taxes if he’s elected president, has created a little stir.

As Huizenga explained briefly before Sunday’s Dolphins victory over the Buffalo Bills at Dolphin Stadium, the presidential election is one of the issues weighing on his mind as he ponders when to sell up to 45 percent more of the Dolphins to Stephen Ross. Huizenga said Obama wants to “double” or “almost double” capital-gains taxes, which could mean an extra hefty bill.

The Obama campaign, however, says their candidate’s plan raises the capital-gains tax maximum from 15 percent to 20 percent – a 33 percent increase -- and that’s only for the top earners – families who earn more than $250,000 or individuals earning more than $200,000. For more on Obama's plan and whether it can happen, read Harriet Johnson Brackey’s It’s Your Money blog.

Regardless of the actual increase, there’s no question Obama plans to raise taxes for the nation’s wealthiest citizens – and yes, Huizenga would be among them. Ross bought 50 percent of the Dolphins, Dolphin Stadium and the surrounding land earlier this year for $550 million. This month, NFL owners approved allowing the eventual transfer of up to 45 percent more of the team to Ross, which means it could take place anytime.

Huizenga said he plans to keep a 5 percent stake in the team. He said he’ll be talking with Ross about the transfer.

“We’ll see what happens,” he said. “No decision made.”

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In a strictly procedural move, the NFL owners gave formal approval Tuesday to allowing H. Wayne Huizenga eventually to transfer up to 45 percent more of the Dolphins to Stephen Ross.

This is not news in the sense that it was always understood -- and anticipated -- that Ross would eventually become majority owner of the Dolphins. He and Huizenga said as much when they announced in February that Ross would be buying 50 percent of the team, Dolphin Stadium and the surrounding land for $550 million. They reiterated the same when the NFL owners approved Ross’ 50 percent purchase on March 31.

And Tuesday’s vote at the owners meeting in St. Petersburg didn’t set a date of transfer, it merely makes the transfer possible. It is not expected to have any bearing on the operation of the team this season.

“This is just another step toward the eventual transfer of up to 95 percent ownership interest in the team and the stadium from Mr. Huizenga to Mr. Ross,” Dolphins spokesman Harvey Greene said.

There’s been plenty of speculation about when Huizenga, who remains managing general partner, will cede control to Ross. The owners don’t have another formal meeting scheduled until March. Could the transfer happen before then? There’s nothing set in stone, but that’s certainly a possibility.

Regardless of when the transfer occurs, Huizenga has vowed to maintain at least 5 percent interest in the team.

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Forbes released its annual list of NFL team values last week and it shows, as you might have expected, that football teams continue to retain their value. And those values continue to rise.

So much so that the average value for an NFL team is now $1 billion -- a dramatic 19 of 32 teams are valued at more than $1 billion – up from just five in 2007.

The Dallas Cowboys maintained the top spot, valued at $1.6 billion up 7 percent from $1.5 billion in 2007. The rest of the top five are the Washington Redskins ($1.54 billion); New England Patriots ($1.3 billion); Super Bowl Champion New York Giants ($1.2 billion); and New York Jets ($1.2 billion).

The Dolphins rank 13th at $1.04 billion up from 15th and $942 million in 2007. You may recall, Stephen Ross paid $550 million earlier this year for half of the team, of Dolphin Stadium and of the developable land around it.

Sports investment experts say teams are worth what people are willing to pay for them. CNBC Sports Business reporter Darren Rovell breaks down why he thinks NFL teams aren't quite as valuable as Forbes figures.

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The Dolphins already offer Ticketmaster’s TicketExchange service, which allows fans to post tickets they can’t use for sale on the team’s Web site. Now the NFL has partnered with Ticketmaster to offer the service league-wide across its 32 teams.

That means fans can go to NFL.com to post or find tickets for sale for any team or can continue going directly to their team’s Web site, if their team offers the service. So far, some 22 teams have individual agreements with TicketExchange, a Ticketmaster spokesman said.

The Heat and Panthers also use TicketExchange. Teams and leagues are supporting the service in the hope it will encourage more fans to buy season tickets if they know they have a secure method for recouping some of their costs.

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Just a month after he was selected second overall by the Dolphins in the 2005 NFL draft, running back Ronnie Brown signed a deal to be a national spokesman for EAS Inc., a Colorado-baesd national supplement maker. The deal was newsworthy not just because Brown was a rookie, but because EAS was the first product to be approved under the NFL and its Players Association’s supplement-certification program.

The program was started to ensure players could find supplements free of the more than 70 items on the league’s banned substances list that includes everything from steroids to growth hormones to masking agents. The program allows manufacturers to apply for approval to state their products contain no banned ingredients.

Brown is among a group of athletes endorsing EAS, called Team EAS, that includes Cleveland Browns quarterback Brady Quinn and Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley.

The company has taken a unique approach to telling its story, featuring Brown’s post-knee surgery workout in a video. He’s wearing an EAS logo on his shirt and he does talk about the benefits of EAS and which products he uses, but it’s woven into the piece that mainly focuses on his workout routine.

No word yet on a followup to watch Brown rehab his injured thumb.

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Brett Favre’s jersey is so popular it occupies the top two spots in the list of the NFL’s top-selling jerseys at NFLShop.com. That’s right: his brand new New York Jets jersey ranks No. 1 among jerseys sold between April 1 and today and his Green Bay Packers jersey ranks No. 2.

The NFL’s online store sold 6,500 Favre jerseys on Thursday – that’s a one-day record for a single player’s jersey. Between Thursday and Sunday, the total number of Favre Jets jerseys sold reached 12,000 – another record for a four-day period, according to the NFL. Check out the variety of Favre items for sale.

Meanwhile, Madden NFL 09 will be released Tuesday with Favre in his Packers jersey on the cover. The photo was planned even as Favre was “in retirement” as a way to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the popular Madden game.

“We wanted to pick someone to show what Madden was about,” said Katherine Coulthart, EA Sports senior publicist. “For us, it was a no brainer."

But since it’s a unique situation, EA is also providing a unique opportunity for Madden NFL 09 buyers to print out a free cover of Favre in his Jets uniform that can be inserted into the game’s case. No predictions on how many of the new games will be sold, but the Madden game has sold 70 million copies in its 20 years.

Donruss also announced last week that it is rushing a Favre trading card – in which he’s holding his No. 4 Jets jersey -- into its Playoff Absolute Memorabilia packages scheduled to be in retail stores the first week of September.

And the Dolphins, who host the New York Jets at Dolphin Stadium on Sept. 7, are expecting a sellout. It’s the home opener and the Jets, but the prospect of seeing Favre - and former Jets quarterback Chad Pennington face his old team - might have helped drive individual ticket sales up about 20 percent from last year, when they went on sale Saturday.

Interested in the top 25 selling jerseys at NFLShop.com between April 1 and today? Here’s the list:

1 Brett Favre, New York Jets
2 Brett Favre, Green Bay Packers
3 Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
4 Tom Brady, New England Patriots
5 Eli Manning, New York Giants
6 Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
7 Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
8 LaDainian Tomlinson, S.D. Chargers
9 Marion Barber, Dallas Cowboys
10 Darren McFadden, Oakland Raiders
11 Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
12 Brian Urlacher, Chicago Bears
13 Devin Hester, Chicago Bears
14 Randy Moss, New England Patriots
15 Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steelers
16 Michael Strahan, New York Giants
17 Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
18 Terrell Owens, Dallas Cowboys
19 Osi Umenyiora, New York Giants
20 Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
21 DeMarcus Ware, Dallas Cowboys
22 Reggie Bush, New Orleans Saints
23 Patrick Willis, San Francisco 49ers
24 Jay Cutler, Denver Broncos
25 JaMarcus Russell, Oakland Raiders

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Jake Long may have a reported $57.75 million five-year contract with $30 million guaranteed with the Dolphins, but Chris Long has a deal with Subway.

University of Virginia defensive end Chris Long, who had been mentioned as a potential No. 1 pick for the Dolphins, is being paired with Subway spokesman Jared Fogle and Fox NFL reporter Jay Glazer for a series of Webisodes related to the NFL Draft. Watch interviews with Long and a series of workouts with Long and Fogle at subwayfreshbuzz.com.

Long is also expected to make appearances for the restaurant. His partnership with Subway follows deals between the restaurant chain and other NFL first-round picks, New Orleans Saints running back Reggie Bush and Cleveland Browns quarterback Brady Quinn, who the Dolphins passed on picking in the first round last year.

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OK…of course, there was the outcome, but for me the blues have to do with missing the game altogether. I know – I get paid to attend, but there’s just something about Opening Day, even if the home team loses. I haven’t missed an opener in eight years.

Instead, I was at the NFL owners meeting in Palm Beach, where the owners unanimously approved the sale of 50 percent of the Dolphins to real estate mogul and part-time Palm Beach resident Stephen M. Ross. It’s no surprise Ross, chairman of the Related Cos., was approved, except perhaps the dispatch with which owners made the decision on Monday morning.

Ross, who’s tried to purchase a team in the past, said he's been in discussions with Huizenga for several years about investing in the team. Ross is interested in team ownership for the challenge.

"This is a great opportunity to get in because there's nowhere to go but up," Ross said of the franchise, which finished the 2007 season 1-15, prompting a shakeup to the front office and coaching staff. "And what better place to own a team than South Florida."

Meanwhile, did you attend Opening Day? How was it? What did you think of the new entertainment…the Marlins Minnows, the new youth dance team, and the Marlins Manatees, the heavy men’s dance troupe that’s been getting more media attention than the team?

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Do you really need a New Orleans Saints pizza cutter that plays When the Saints Go Marching In? How about that Indianapolis Colts figurine soap dispenser? A super ball that plays the Monday Night Football theme song when bounced?

Or Footjoy’s new line of golf shoes – with or without spikes – in NFL team colors with logos that you can even print your name on? That’ll cost you $155 to $200 a pair, starting in April.

NFL licensees certainly hope so. The NFL Hardlines VI Trade Show – featuring 86 NFL licensees showing off hundreds of non-apparel items at Dolphin Stadium Tuesday – was a football fan’s smorgasbord of items you never knew you needed. But it was just for the industry, so the league and its 32 teams can pick out items to sell at stadiums, outfit suites and give as season ticket renewal gifts this year.

Talk about creative: Dolphins recliners complete with cup holders; Dolphins pool tables, bar stools and Tiffany lamps. A computer mouse. A collapsible table with four chairs attached that pops open easily for your tailgate. Candles and air fresheners. Sippy cups with little team mascots on top.

And even Forest Faces with team caps. That’s right – those resin faces that you nail into a tree will begin coming out with NFL team caps come May 1 for $19.95. “You animate the tree,” says Mike Sockel, senior vice president of Team Sports America, which makes the NFL Forest Face.

The show started six years ago in Green Bay as a way to showcase innovative products. Previously the NFL had been attending sports industry-wide shows that either disbanded or were held during football season when many officials couldn’t attend, said Leo Kane, league vice president of consumer products.

“We decided we wanted to control the message as well,” Kane said. “We talk about the NFL and our 32 clubs, as opposed to other sports. As important to us is that we see the new product and it’s important that all our licensing partners know where we’re going with Super Bowl logos and season-long themes.”

Of particular interest this year, Kane said, are women’s and children’s products. But there’s something for everyone, he said.

“Hopefully there’s something new in every booth,” he said. “New product innovation is really the lifeblood. We want all of our licensees, new and existing, to reinvent themselves every year, because that’s what the fans have come to expect from us. If you build it they will come.”

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So, will Super Bowl XLII Champion New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning challenge his brother Peyton for ad time after pulling off his team’s stunning upset of the New England Patriots on Sunday?

“Eli couldn’t have scripted a better finish for his marketing success,” says Bob Dorfman, of San Francisco-based Baker Street Partners and author of the Super Bowl XLII Sports Marketers’ Scouting Report. Dorfman says the Super Bowl win could be worth as much as $5 million in new endorsement deals. “Though Eli lacks the cachet, charisma and acting chops of big brother Peyton, he shows solid potential as a potent pitchman.”

Dorfman figures Manning, who already has deals with Oreo (you've no doubt seen the Eli and Peyton pitching Oreo's Double Stuff Racing League), DirecTV and ESPN, could do ads for T-Mobile “everyone will want to be in his Fave 5 now,” a car deal, or fast food, where he could promote a “Giant-sized” deal. "As the new toast of New York, Eli could also earn seven figures in regional marketing deals,” Dorfman said.

Other marketable Giants able to capitalize? “Michael Strahan stands to benefit the most after Eli. He’s already a household name and face, has a proven endorsement resume, speaks well, is charismatic on camera, and has that signature gap-tooth smile that might be fun in a Crest toothpaste ad,” Dorfman said. “He also has a solid future in broadcasting.”

And “Plaxico Burress could land a Kleenex deal after his teary post-game interview,” Dorfman said.

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It’s a long shot for sure, but Stan D’Alo, a Dolphins season ticket holder from Coral Springs, is trying to gauge fan interest in purchasing stock in the team.

He’s launched buythefins.com, a Web site where fans can indicate their interest in purchasing a piece of the Dolphins. He’s estimating 10 million shares at $120 to $130 apiece. No one would be allowed to own more than 2 percent of the total shares.

“We’re going to ask people 'if stock was offered in the team would you buy it?',” D’Alo said. “Basically I want to organize people and see how much interest there is.”

D’Alo was inspired to launch the site after word leaked last month that Dolphins owner H. Wayne Huizenga was in talks to potentially sell the team for at least $1 billion. D’Alo figured it’d be worth trying to make the team a community asset, like the Green Bay Packers.

The Packers, who face the New York Giants in Sunday's NFC Championship game, have been publicly owned since 1923. According to the team's Web site, 112,015 stockholders own more than 4.75 million shares, but the stock doesn’t appreciate and shareholders don’t receive dividends. No one is allowed to own more than 200,000 shares. The company is overseen by a board of directors and an executive committee.

The team is so popular that stock sales have helped the Packers out of financial trouble on four occasions, including as recently as 1997, when fans spent $200 a share to raise $24 million for Lambeau Field renovations.

So far, D’Alo says he has about 20 people on the stock-request waiting list. That’s after he held up a sign at the Dolphins final home game last month. He’s encouraging others to talk up the idea and print out fliers to post at their offices.

“The league doesn’t want to have this kind of ownership,” said D’Alo, a season ticket holder for nine years. “[But] If they want the kind of money they will ask for franchises in the future they aren’t going find a lot of people who are going to be able to lay out that kind of money. It’s going to take corporations to buy teams in the future.”

Corporate ownership is prohibited in the NFL.

“I believe that if people want something they should gather and communicate with others who have the same interest and figure out a way to pay for it with private dollars. That is what my Web site is about,” D’Alo said.

“I leave this up to public debate and let the people decide if they would like to take part in communicating with our organization to make this happen.”

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