The NFL Draft could be coming to a city near us.
Agitation with Radio City Music Hall is one reason the draft may leave New York. The cash tsunami that will ensue when the event is auctioned is another.
And Sports Illustrated’s Peter King writes in his Monday Morning Quarterback column that Patriots owner Robert Kraft wants Boston in the mix to host.
In listing the possible suitors for a relocated draft, King writes, “Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel spoke to Roger Goodell twice about having the draft somewhere there -- gigantic McCormick Place near Soldier Field, for instance -- and other cities loomed. Jerry Jones pines to have the draft at Jerry World in Arlington. Los Angeles wants it. Bob Kraft wants it in Boston.”
We reached out to the Patriots to confirm Kraft’s interest. Haven’t heard back yet.
Would Boston be a smart play? From a local angle, that’s a hard sell. The Patriots are continually picking in the low 20s, so the pre-draft buzz in Boston is casual compared to the teams who are often in the top 10.
Mid-spring sports attention is devoted to the Bruins and Celtics (hypothetically) playoffs and the early-season fortunes of the Red Sox.
And major college football interest up here is so tepid, you could put the 30 green room invitees on the Green Line and the only response would be, “Wow. Look at all these big bastids . . . "
Whether a lack of local interest matters or not to the NFL is debatable. They could hold the draft on an aircraft carrier in the Indian Ocean and it would still outpoint its TV ratings competition.
But for appearances sake, what would the NFL like? A sidewalk full of fans hanging over velvet ropes as a Georgia linebacker walks the red carpet on a Thursday evening? I’m not sure you get that up here as easily as you might in a lot of other cities.
ja rado ne bi ni stavljao TB jel su mi simpaticni ali realnost drugo govori
