NFL to kick off first full-scale draft since COVID-19 pandemic hit

The National Football League’s (NFL) annual draft is set to take place in Las Vegas this weekend. The draft stage has been set up on the iconic fountains at the Bellagio.

Thursday’s night’s first round proceedings are three years in the making. The 2020 NFL draft was supposed to be held in Las Vegas until the pandemic forced it to be held virtually.

“We’ve had a core vision that has been three years in place. We’ve learned a ton on how it can evolve and grow,” said Peter O’Reilly, the NFL executive vice president of club business and league events. “There will be a sense of accomplishment and some relief when we are past Mr. Irrelevant and the Marshmello concert.”

This weekend’s draft also continues a trend of the NFL taking the draft on the road after spending just under a decade at Radio City Music Hall. Since then, the draft has been held in:

• Chicago (2015 and 2016)
• Philadelphia (2017)
• Arlington, Texas (2018)
• Nashville (2019)
• Cleveland (2021)

The Cleveland draft was not a full-scale operation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but this year’s draft in Vegas will be.

“It’s become a pilgrimage event by NFL fans,” O’Reilly said. “And we’re in a destination market. The fans come in and connect with each other, and they all feel that hope, which is the single most [accurate] word for a draft.”

The next two drafts are planned to take place in Kansas City (2023) and Detroit (2024). According to O’Reilly, 20 NFL cities have expressed interest in hosting the draft, including several that already have done so.

Michigan edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson is widely believed to be drafted No. 1 overall to the Jacksonville Jaguars, although some have Georgia’s Travon Walker as the top pick. Hutchinson set a Michigan single-season school record with 14 sacks last year.

“If there is a better player out there that’s draft-eligible than Aidan Hutchinson, I have not seen that player,” John Harbaugh, Hutchinson’s coach at Michigan, said last season.