With the coronavirus pandemic forcing the National Football League to go the virtual route for its upcoming draft, we’ve learned about a new golden nugget during the opening round.
As is customary, commissioner Roger Goodell will announce each of the 32 draft selections during the first round on April 23.
But according to Peter King of NBC Sports, because we are now all following physical distancing guidelines due to COVID-19 — at least, we all should be — Goodell will not be at NFL headquarters in New York City or a television studio on draft night.
Goodell will announce the first-round picks from the basement of his home in Bronxville, N.Y.
Oh boy, are the millions of people on social media going to have a field day with that or what?
It will be a guaranteed top trending topic.
The draft was originally supposed to be held in Las Vegas but COVID-19 tossed a big fat wrench into that plan and, well, here we are.
The one thing that we are not going to see on draft night is Goodell embracing the players who are selected in the first round, as he is apt to do, because those players will also be attending the draft virtually.
Word is, some of the marquee players that are expected to be taken in Round 1 will appear from their homes, and they’ve been told to have no more than six people on screen.
The Cincinnati Bengals hold the No. 1 overall selection and they won’t surprise anyone when they take LSU quarterback Joe Burrow.
The NFL draft will still be must-see TV, however, because we all want to see what Goodell’s basement looks like.