2025 NFL Draft; journey to bring the process back to Wisconsin

MILWAUKEE - When the NFL Draft comes to Green Bay later this month, it’ll bring football fans from across the country to watch teams basically do administrative work: select players they hope will make them Super Bowl Champions.

History of the NFL Draft

The backstory:

Since first being televised in 1980, the draft changed from being a way to fill out a roster to an extravaganza; drawing fans to the site of the draft to cheer or (in the case of Jets fans) boo their first-round pick.

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Since 2015, the draft has become a traveling spectacle stopping in Chicago, Philadelphia and Detroit to name a few of the cities who’ve played host.  In a way, that’s back to its roots, because when the draft started, it moved from city to city corresponding to whichever city was hosting the NFL Championship.  The first draft was held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Philadelphia.

What they're saying:

"The draft was the brainchild of Bert Bell who was commissioner at the time", according to Rich Desrosiers of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.  "He had strong ties to the Philadelphia Eagles and the Eagles weren’t really good back then, and he decided that we would have this amateur draft and would pick in reverse order of the standings."

Rich Desrosiers

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That draft played out like so many other drafts in that the first player selected was the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, Jay Berwanger of the University of Chicago. Berwanger, however, never played a down in the NFL.  The Eagles were not able to reach a financial agreement with Berwanger who started his own manufacturing business after a stint in the US Navy.  His reluctance to sign was not unusual in the early days of the NFL. "Of the 81 players drafted that year, 52 of them never played a down of professional football," according the HOF’s Desrosiers.

1940 NFL Draft

What we know:

The 1940 draft was held at Milwaukee’s Schroeder Hotel (now a Hilton) in December 1939. News reporters of the time say the Green Bay Packers impressed their out-of-town guests with their hospitality which included a tenderloin dinner followed by drinks at a nearby bar.

The next day, the Packers pummeled the New York Giants for their fifth NFL Championship in a game played at Wisconsin State Fair Park.

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The draft location moved around for many years until 1965, when New York City became the de facto home of the draft until a scheduling conflict with Radio City Musical Hall forced the league to take the show on the road.  It’s a decision that has proved popular and lucrative for cities hosting the annual event.

Regardless of where it takes place, its importance remains as strong as ever for every NFL team. 

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Green Bay On Draft: The Pick Is In

The Packers have said the 2025 NFL Draft may be the biggest event Titletown ever hosts – and it's now less than a month away.

What they're saying:

"It’s still the best way to build your teams, the teams who are successful year in and year out are the ones who get this right" according to Desrosiers.  If they really get it right, that player ends up where Desrosiers works: the Pro Football Hall of Fame.