The densely packed crowd reached four blocks up Nashville's honky-tonk row on Lower BroadwayGETTY IMAGES
An estimated 200,000 people made up the "throng of fans that engulfed Lower Broadway" in Nashville on Thursday for the first round of the NFL Draft, according to Meg Garner of the NASHVILLE BUSINESS JOURNAL. The crowd was "more than double the estimated daily average for the CMA Music Festival" -- Nashville's biggest multiday annual event (BIZJOURNALS.com, 4/26). In Nashville, Timms & Leimkuehler noted the "densely packed crowd reached four blocks up Nashville's honky-tonk row," with stragglers "probably all the way back to Bridgestone Arena." Many fans who were "able to make it into the honky-tonks watched from rooftops and through windows" (TENNESSEAN.com, 4/25). In Tulsa, Bill Haisten writes Nashville deserves "kudos," as the scenes from the Draft "looked amazing on television." Lower Broadway was "perfect for this epitome of football festivals" (TULSA WORLD, 4/26). In Chicago, Phil Rosenthal writes Nashville "looked great as a backdrop" to the Draft. Even in the rain, fans "wedged themselves into the street, giving the vibe of Times Square on New Year's Eve" in "one dizzying aerial shot after another" (CHICAGOTRIBUNE.com, 4/26). ABC's Paula Faris noted the streets were "jammed last night and it didn't matter that it was pouring rain" ("GMA," ABC, 4/26).
KEEP OUTDOING THEMSELVES: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell called the scene in Nashville "unbelievable" and noted the Draft every year "seems to get bigger and bigger." Goodell: "Everybody takes this and raises the bar, and Nashville has done it once again. Nashville's just been spectacular. You can see the passion of the fans and everyone's having a great time, which is what we really care about." ESPN's Sam Ponder asked Goodell prior to the Draft why he believed the event has been as successful as it has been since moving it from N.Y. He replied, "We've made it more accessible by moving it around so we bring it to fans, we bring it to communities and then the teams ... wrap their arms around it." He added the league has been "able to continue to make it free for all our fans" so that they can "just enjoy the moment" ("NFL Draft Countdown," ESPN, 4/25). Titans Controlling Owner Amy Adams Strunk called the Draft an "unbelievable, surreal feeling" for Nashville. She said the city was "tailor-made for this kind of event." Strunk: "It stays a party every second. It's wonderful" ("NFL Draft Red Carpet," NFL Network, 4/25). Goodell said city officials were "intent to make sure they put Nashville on the best possible platform and show off what they're all about" ("Draft Kickoff," NFL Network, 4/25).
LOOKING AHEAD: The Draft next year is heading to Las Vegas, and Ponder said she is "almost nervous now for how this is going to be." Goodell said he "can't even think that far" because the league still has to "get through the next three days." Goodell said there are a "number of cities that are looking to host" the Draft, and when they see the scene in Nashville, there is "going to be an even bigger line" ("NFL Draft Countdown," ESPN, 4/25).
