Chargers the 17th-most Expensive NFL Ticket

Vivid Seats released its home and road ticket price reports for the 2014 NFL season, and the Chargers currently have the 17th-hottest ticket in the league.
According to a Vivid Seats spokesperson, the average ticket price for a game at Qualcomm Stadium is $181. In comparison, the Denver Broncos have the 5th-hottest ticket price ($337), while the the Oakland Raiders ($138) and Kansas City Chiefs ($130) rank 26th and 29th, respectively.
San Diego’s priciest home game is when Tom Brady and the New England Patriots come to town in Week 14, with an average price of $268 per seat. Behind that is Week 15’s ($236) battle against Peyton Manning and the rival Denver Broncos. With two of the most iconic quarterbacks in the league heading to San Diego, it makes sense that these are the games fans want to see.
One statistic I found notable is all four teams that advanced to their respective conference championships (Seattle, San Francisco in the NFC and Denver, New England in the AFC) rank in the top five of most expensive prices. Until the Chargers take that next step and consistently be a threat in the AFC, tickets won’t be in demand.
Road games not as popular
The Chargers are ranked as the 26th-most popular team on the road. According Vivid Seats, median ticket prices have decreased by 12.8 percent as the visiting opponent, giving the Chargers the 7th-worst road draw in the NFL. Their smallest draw is at Miami (-22.5%) with a median ticket price of $100. Their most expensive road game: San Diego’s visit to San Francisco in Week 16 to take on the 49ers in the new stadium. The median ticket price of that game came to $287, per Vivid Seats. The list below shows the average impact on opponent home team prices. Only three teams whose records were above .500 in 2013–the Chiefs, Chargers and Cardinals–are in the bottom half. In comparison, San Francisco (12-4) has the top overall road draw (+44.9%).
Expectations too low?
The Chargers do not have a 2014 matchup ranked in the top 25, per Vivid Seats. It goes to show that people perceive the Chargers as an average-to-below-average team with low expectations. After the performance put on by the Chargers towards the end of the season, delivering unexpected home losses to the Broncos and Chiefs and sneaking into the playoffs, you would think at least one game would reek of anticipation. Brady’s Patriots and Manning’s Broncos face off in the most expensive matchup of the season.
*All Statistics and Data courtesy of Vivid Seats