Two years ago, Las Vegas lost a chance to host the NFL Draft when COVID-19 swept the country, turning it into a unique virtual event.
Vegas will host the 2022 draft, which begins with Thursday night’s first round in Sin City, but natural phenomena again create potential challenges for the league.
There’s no threat of the NFL Draft being canceled or delayed, and this time around COVID isn’t the overriding concern — the weather is.
According to the first forecasts, wind could be an issue while the project is underway. Although some projections call for wind intensity to peak in the hours leading up to the first round at 8 p.m. ET, it could reach over 25 mph.
The draft – much of what you’ll see on TV – will take place outdoors in the heart of the famous Vegas Strip, with the league’s Draft Experience and Draft Theater located behind the High Roller and LINQ, just a stone’s throw away. next to Caesars Forum. .
Thousands of fans are expected at the outdoor event, along with the ESPN and NFL Network broadcast stages and the 21 prospects expected.
April is usually the windiest month in Las Vegas. And if winds reach dangerous levels, a league spokesperson said there is a contingency plan to move parts of it indoors if necessary.
“We still have contingency plans. The show will go on,” the NFL’s Brian McCarthy wrote to Yahoo Sports in an email Thursday morning. “We have the Caesars Forum, which is connected to the outdoor draft theater, in case pick announcements need to be made from there. The inner workings of the draft are there, including the media work room and the rooms of a press conference.”
For more on the Round 1 setup, as well as the rest of the draft (which runs through Saturday), here are some details for what you can expect and how you can watch the event.
Whether outdoors, as planned, or indoors in an emergency.
