Lions to rub shoulders with fans,

They were the doormats of the NFL for a long time and then they grew claws, having their best season in 11 years at 10-6. Now Lions fans will have a chance to see their team in action at Ford Field in a practice session with players and coaches signing autographs August 5th.

The Coach's Kickoff will give Lions fans their first opportunity to see the 2012 team in action at Ford Field. Following a player autograph session, the Lions will hold a team practice in preparation for their pre-season opener vs. Cleveland on August 10 at Ford Field. At the conclusion of practice, Country music rising star Maggie Rose will take the stage, followed by multi-talented Country singer/songwriter Randy Houser, delivering fans the ultimate concert experience.

A tentative schedule of events is below:
5:00 - Doors Open Lions Autograph Session (5 p.m. – 5:45 p.m.)
6:45 - Lions Practice
8:00 - Maggie Rose and Randy Houser

The Lions want to remind fans that autographs are limited on a first-come first-serve basis and are not guaranteed.

Tickets are on sale or visit all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster.com or charge by phone at 1-800-745-3000.

Tickets may also be purchased in person at the Ford Field Gate G Box Office Monday - Friday from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Ticket prices are as follows:
$20 – General Admission Floor Tickets (plus fees)
$10 – Adult General Admission Tickets (plus fees)
$5 – Kids (Ages 2-12) General Admission Tickets (plus fees)

One full price adult ticket must be purchased for every 4 kids tickets (ages 2-12 require ticket, under 2 free). No kids tickets sold without full price adult ticket purchase. No exchanges or refunds. 

The Lions made their first playoff appearance since 1992 when they were the Wild Card team and played New Orleans in the first round of the 2011 NFL playoffs, losing to the Saints in New Orleans 45-28.

In other NFL news....

Fantasy Football just got a lot more social.

In a first for any fantasy league, NFL.com Fantasy Football will be integrated with Google+ Hangouts, it was announced Wednesday through a release from the league office. NFL.com Fantasy Football will be the only fantasy game to integrate Google+ Hangouts for the 2012 season, making it the first fantasy game to incorporate multi-party video chat.
                              
Google+ Hangouts allow friends to connect face-to-face-to-face via group video chat. NFL.com Fantasy leagues now may host their drafts “face-to-face-to-face,” even if participants are half a world apart. League rules changes can now be settled through live video chat, replacing lengthy e-mail chains. During the season, NFL.com Fantasy players may hang out while watching games.
                              
A Google+ Hangouts button will appear throughout NFL.com Fantasy Football leagues. Users who click the Hangouts button will launch their fantasy league’s unique Google+ Hangouts page.  Live notifications and other features will be added to the experience throughout the season.
                              
Other new features on NFL.com Fantasy Football include:
                              
·The first draft client for tablets. NFL.com Fantasy users now may begin their drafts at their computers and then take their draft with them into another room or on the go. NFL.com is the only fantasy site to have draft client for tablets.
                              
·Roster Options, which give fans a chance to allocate backups on their roster in the event they are unsure if their starter will have a good game. Each league must decide rules and regulations for using Roster Options. When using Roster Options, NFL.com will assign a fantasy team the higher number of points scored between the team’s starter and backup.  NFL.com is the only fantasy site to offer Roster Options.
                              
·Auction Draft option gives fans an even deeper GM experience than before allowing leagues to set fake salary cap numbers and draft players through an auction style assigning values to them.
                              
Also new this year, fans may play Perfect Challenge Fantasy Game presented by Castrol® featuring a $1 million prize for picking the “perfect” fantasy lineup in any week of the 2012 NFL regular season. Fans may register for the free game now at www.nfl.com/fantasyfootball. The new offering puts experts and beginners both in the game with a shot at the ultimate fantasy prize. The Perfect Challenge Fantasy Game presented by Castrol® features an eight-player roster each week – with one quarterback, two running backs, two wide receivers, one tight end, one kicker and one defense/special teams unit. To qualify for the $1 million prize, fantasy team owners must pick that week’s highest-scoring player at each position (top two players at running back and wide receiver). Scoring is based on the standard fantasy scoring in NFL.com’s Fantasy Football game. Each week is scored separately and fans may join at any point during the season. The Perfect Challenge Fantasy Game presented by Castrol® also offers weekly prizes. 
                              
NFL.com Fantasy Football continues to be the only site that has NFL highlights, including instant in-game highlights. Once a big play happens involving a player on a certain fantasy team, the video highlight will appear on the screen in as quickly as 30 seconds.
                              
NFL.com Fantasy Football makes available two free platforms. NFL Custom League provides fans the opportunity to customize a league for their friends. Fans who sign up for NFL-Managed League (NFL.com Fantasy 2012) will be in a league run by NFL.com and be eligible for a chance to win official NFL prizes including a trip to Super Bowl XLVII.
                              
NFL.com is the first place to get the game-day inactives & regular injury reports. In addition, NFL.com Fantasy Football provides users with a drag-and-drop function to simplify roster adjustments.
                              
NFL.com Fantasy Football will provide a comprehensive ‘Activity Feed’ for each player and league. The unique feed contains breaking news, transactions, injury reports, discussions and league-manager changes all in one place.  Fans can see all league activity in one area and make comments on activity as it happens.
                              
In August 2007, NFL brought the operations of NFL.com in-house and re-launched the site. In June 2010, NFL brought operations of NFL.com Fantasy Football in-house and launched its game. NFL.com is the home for the most NFL highlights and video on the web.