Eagles won't raise ticket prices for 2012

EAGLES FANS grumbly over the lack of change in the coaching ranks might feel a little better about another area in which the Birds are standing pat.

The team isn't raising ticket prices for 2012. All tickets will remain at 2011 levels, Eagles president Joe Banner said yesterday.

"This is something we're thrilled to be able to do," said Banner, who noted this will be the fourth year in a row under the current price structure. "There aren't many teams who are selling out their stadiums and have a waiting list of more than 40,000 who are doing that. In fact, I would say there aren't any teams like that who haven't raised prices for 4 years."

Banner said he expects the Birds' average ticket price will rank somewhere around 20th in the 32-team league when all is said and done, around 12th in premium seating. Team Marketing Report tabbed the Eagles' average ticket at $69 last season, which ranked 21st.

Obviously, the decision on tickets comes against a backdrop of extraordinary fan frustration over the Eagles' missing the playoffs with an 8-8 record despite many glamorous offseason moves last year.

"Everything is affected by how the season goes," Banner acknowledged. "But we're happy, in these tough economic times, to be able to do this. We're trying to be as reasonable as we can."

Banner said prices on Eagles tickets through secondary markets last season were near the top of the league, indicating demand would support a price increase, but the team decided it would be better to hold the line.

He said invoices are going out this week.

Eagles linebacker Jamar Chaney told the team website yesterday that he expects to be recovered from postseason neck disk surgery in time for minicamp in a few months.

"I didn't have to have [the surgery]," Chaney said. "It was just something I wanted to have to prevent it from happening again. They fused my neck. It's coming along pretty good now. By the end of this month, maybe next month, I should be back to myself 100 percent. I feel pretty good now, working out, squatting, bench pressing, doing the normal stuff I would be doing in the offseason.

"I think I made the right decision to have the surgery because as long as we have this off time, it's worth it. As long as I was going to be back for when we come back for workouts and right before we go to minicamps and OTAs and all that, I wanted to participate in all of that. They told me the timetable would be mid-March, so I went ahead and did it."