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A few weeks ago, before the 2014 NFL Draft, rumors about the league moving the draft started swirling. According to the league, Radio City Music Hall's other commitments in April dictated that the league move the draft back two weeks, and then we learned that the event in question was ultimately cancelled anyway.
Then, the first day of the draft, May 8th, Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel learned that Jim Schmitt, the mayor of Green Bay, wanted to put together a bid to host the draft in Titletown.
Over the past 24 hours, we learned that Radio City Music Hall is definitely out as the host of the 2015 Draft, and that the league is looking at bids from numerous cities, including Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York City (at Madison Square Garden instead).
That bid is becoming very real, as this report from a Green Bay FOX affiliate's reporter shows:
Spoke to @GBJimSchmitt's office and GB visitors bureau--heard little from NFL on Draft; sense Visitors Bureau gets is unlikely for this yr
— Justin Felder (@Justin_Felder) June 6, 2014
Unfortunately, as you can see, it does not appear feasible for the 2015 NFL Draft. However, that will not stop the mayor and the city's efforts to bring the draft to Green Bay in future years:
GB Visitors Bureau says #Packers informed league of interest. If NFL has draft outside NYC in future, GB will try again to get it.
— Justin Felder (@Justin_Felder) June 6, 2014
Keep on, Mr. Schmitt. It seems like an impossibility for Green Bay to ever host the NFL's biggest event (the Super Bowl, obviously), but perhaps someday down the road the city will indeed be the stage for the league's biggest off-season event.
If anyone from the NFL is reading this: the weather in Green Bay is usually pretty mild in late April, and Door County would make a great spot for rookies to relax for a few hours if they don't get picked on Day One. Let's do this.