For maybe the first time in his 16-year tenure as commissioner of the NFL, Roger Goodell stepped to a microphone in front of a crowd of football fans Thursday afternoon in Detroit and was met with ... cheers?
"It’s a Draft event, I expect a few boos," Goodell quipped. "Don’t you guys have any?"
The couple hundred spectators in Campus Martius Park, many of them wearing Honolulu Blue, delivered.
"There you go, that’s more like it," said Goodell. "It makes me feel more welcome, honestly."
In 2024, Detroit will welcome the NFL Draft. Thursday was the celebration of a successful mission, several years in the making, on the part of the Lions and the city to host what Goodell called the NFL's "biggest and most significant offseason event."
"And just so you know," said Goodell, "Nashville hosted it (in 2019) and had 600,000 people in those three days at the Draft. So you have your challenge in front of you, Detroit."
Another unsuspecting figure was met with kindly applause on Thursday: Lions owner Sheila Ford Hamp. The fans in attendance on a blustery day downtown weren't here to huff and puff. They had congregated to celebrate what
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, also on hand, called a "huge win for Detroiters."
At one point, NFL on CBS analyst Charles Davis, the emcee of the event, looked into the crowd and spotted Lions legend and seven-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman Lomas Brown, seated in the first row in front of the stage.
"Is that Lomas Brown!?" said Davis, motioning for Brown to stand up. Brown obliged and was met with the biggest cheer of the day, one fan in the back yelling, "We love you!"
"Back in my collegiate days," said Davis, an All-SEC safety at Tennessee, "Lomas Brown ran me over. And after about the third time, he was nice enough to lean down and go, 'Davis, it’d be a lot easier if you just stayed down.'"
Detroit, meanwhile, continues to get up. The Draft will be another chance to highlight -- and further -- the rebirth of one of America's most iconic cities. Goodell said the NFL estimates an economic impact of "at least $200 million" in the local community and announced that the league will re-invest "more than a million" into Detroit "for long-lasting community projects that will be here will beyond the final pick."
On top of the hundreds of thousands who are expected to descend on the city over the course of three days in late April, the Draft will be broadcast to some 70 million people worldwide, said Goodell.
"It's an opportunity for us to highlight the resurgence of your city," he said, "and to make sure that the things being done here are known far behind Detroit, all around the globe."
The Lions, led by president Rod Wood, started pursuing the Draft five years ago. Their first bid to host in 2020 fell short; Detroit wasn't even included among the five finalists. This time, it won out over Green Bay and Washington DC. Call it two straight victories against the Packers.
"Detroit will be the 13th city to host the NFL Draft, and we know it’s going to be a terrific site," said Goodell. "And the reason why is all around us. It’s the support that runs deep and wide. It’s the passion and dedication of all of you that will bring this to life and put Detroit on the big stage."
The event will be sponsored by Bud Light and staged in the area around Campus Martius and Hart Plaza. It will feature music events at Ford Field and Little Caesars Arena and fireworks on the Detroit River. In the process, "it will drive a tremendous amount of visibility for your community," said Goodell.
"Where would you rather be," asked Davis, "than right here, right now? Could Campus Martius Park look any better than it looks right now?"
We'll find out in 2024.
"In just two short years," said Hamp, "the space and the city you are standing in today will be a stage to showcase the best of our dynamic and rebuilding city."