Getty Roger Goodell speaking prior to the Super Bowl.
The NFL Draft is a time-honored tradition, and in recent years, it’s been on the move nationally. The Detroit Lions want to see it in their neck of the woods soon, and are convinced that can happen.
Speaking with the media on Wednesday, Lions president Rod Wood was asked about where things stood with getting the draft to the city, and it sounds as if the team could be in great shape to do so and end a drought that has plagued the interested team brass.
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According to Wood, the Lions could be closing in on being able to host the 2024 NFL Draft, and it’s something the franchise has wanted to do for a while.
Rod Wood: The Lions are “in the mix” to host the 2024 draft and are a “serious contender” for it.
The Lions were passed up for recent drafts, but have remained on the hunt with the league to stay in the picture, and it sure seems with this news that the Lions want to find a way to get a draft to the Motor City for the future. Obviously, fans will hope they can get this done, because it would be an excellent event for the Lions and the city to add to the ledger.
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Future NFL Draft Sites
The league has put the show on the road since the early days when it was in New York every single year. Venues in Chicago, Dallas, Philadelphia, Nashville and Las Vegas have been part of the early rotation, even though Las Vegas was forced to go without the draft in 2020 thanks to COVID-19. This season, the draft is set to remain in Cleveland, and the theme has been to take things on the road for the present and the future.
In 2022, the draft will head back to Las Vegas. Then in 2023 and 2024, the locales are open at this point in time. That means theoretically, the Lions could get themselves into the mix. If Wood thinks it’s possible, there could be a chance for the Lions to strike and nab the draft.
Lions Have Been Trying to Host NFL Draft
The big event has been common in the Motor City for decades, with the city playing host to the Super Bowl in 2006, multiple NCAA events such as Final Fours and Regional Finals as well as bowl games have been hosted at Ford Field. As a result, it isn’t unreasonable to think that the city could successfully host a draft. They’d probably like to have it outside in downtown Detroit, or have it intertwined with Ford Field if that was possible indoors.
Regardless, it seems as if the Lions are closing in on making a Detroit draft a reality in the near future for the city and the franchise. It would be an excellent event if the team could find a way to make it happen.
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