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NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will stroll to the podium at Radio City Music Hall on Saturday for what could be the last time.
Meeting with a group of newspaper sports editors, Goodell confirmed today that the NFL is considering moving the draft out of New York and giving other cities a chance to host the event. The league’s contract with Radio City Music Hall is in its last year.
One option that has been discussed in the past is to move the draft to the city of the team that has the first pick. That would give the fans in the city that is home to the league’s worst team something to look forward to, but there are problems, including the possibility that the team could trade the pick, and that, as we’ve seen this year, there is often no suspense surrounding the first pick.
NFL cities that have expressed interest in hosting the draft include San Diego, Cleveland and Chicago. Officials in Canton, Ohio, home of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, have also said they would like to host the draft.
April 24th, 2008 at 5:01 pm
why not just alternate around all the cities the NFL is in? 32 teams, 32 drafts. Everyone gets a chance. Though this means that the league will have to make nice with Oakland.
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April 24th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
Maybe they could just have it in London or China.
I’m sure it’s good “global marketing” of their American product.
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April 24th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
bring it to philly!!!!!!!!!!
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April 24th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
So what if the team trades the first pick? How does that lead to a situation that is ANY different from what we have now, where it is essentially arbitrary?
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April 24th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
Since the league obviously favors certain cities for the Super Bowl (San Diego, N.O. Miami. etc.), they SHOULD rotate the draft among those cities that are unlikely to land a Super Bowl because of whatever reason (Pitt, Seattle, Clev., Cinn, etc.).
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April 24th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
How the site of another overblown event, The Kodak Theater in Hollywood!
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April 24th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
I have no desire to see it live, no matter which town its in. So what do I care if its ten miles away or 10,000?
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April 24th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
Good…move it around the country for all to see.
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April 24th, 2008 at 6:02 pm
If the team trades the pick, it will still be an event for that city, that team will still most likely be picking somewhere in the first round, and will pick up extra picks that can be booed by hometown fans.
The idea would mostly just help to rotate the location fairly.
But the NFL must import Jets fans into these cities too, watching their befuddled faces is priceless.
Candrew’s ideas is good though too, set it up in cities that have never, or likely never will get to host the Superbowl. I’m looking at you Cleveland.
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April 24th, 2008 at 6:06 pm
I think Washington D.C. would be appropriate as well. Where else should a bunch of rich, old and out of touch white guys hold a big event?
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April 24th, 2008 at 6:06 pm
Just have it in Hawaii and shitcan the probowl game.
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April 24th, 2008 at 6:07 pm
It should defintely NOT go to Philly, but a different city in Pennsylvania.
How about Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, home to Just Born Candies (Peeps, Mike & Ikes, Hot Tamales), and plenty of elgible spots to host such a large event. I nominate PFT to start the Draft in Bethlehem march.
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April 24th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
We all know that move it around means “the city which offers
the best monetary deal.”
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April 24th, 2008 at 7:10 pm
I’m gonna miss hearing Jets fans annually boo their first round selection… of course, Goodell isn’t man enough to announce it himself lest HE be booed… he’s making some poor Jets fan have the “honor” of going to the podium to get booed for what the front office does.
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April 24th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Who. F**cking. Cares.
Seriously, what does it matter to fans where the draft is held, as long as we know far enough in advance?!
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April 24th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
I nominate Detroit to host the draft.
We are dying to get a pro football team in Detroit.
And, as such, clearly, possible expansion sites should not be excluded from this discussion.
(and yes, it is hard to do this from a blackberry, which is why this went to the wrong thread last time)
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April 24th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
dude if they give it to the top team it will be
1. detroit
2. arizona
3. miami
4. cincinatti
repeat every 4 years. and sprinkle buffalow in every couple of yrs.
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April 24th, 2008 at 8:03 pm
in the draft i mean
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April 24th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
Yeaaah. Buffalow (sic). To go along with that one other time they picked first (1979).
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April 24th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
Just go through the cities alphabetically and if a city doesn’t want it they can elect to opt out.
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April 24th, 2008 at 10:04 pm
It’s too bad the NFL is so prudish about gambling, because the logical place to hold the draft is Las Vegas.
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April 24th, 2008 at 10:41 pm
I don’t mind the draft being in New York, but it would be nice to move it. I would be fine with D.C. or Pittsburgh, pretty much wherever, as long as the fans were given ample time to make accomodations.
I would, however, not like it in Philly. I’d rather not have batteries thrown at me.
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April 24th, 2008 at 10:52 pm
They should put the draft in all the cities that aren’t allowed to host a Super Bowl since those cities get hosed.
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April 25th, 2008 at 12:14 am
It seems to me that Canton would be the best place to hold the draft. It would be interesting to see who the first Canton draftee would be to make it to the hall would be.
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April 25th, 2008 at 6:18 am
They should hold the draft in cities where teams are trying to get stadium deals done. IMO, it would show a good faith effort by the NFL of wanting to keep those franchises at their current locations. The first stop should be San Diego.
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