Photo: Mandi Wright ~ USA TODAY NETWORK
DETROIT, April 26, 2024 ~ In a statement issued Thursday, the NFL announced that more than 275,000 fans were on-hand in Downtown Detroit for day one of the NFL Draft, an attendance number that surpassed the previous record of 200,000 set in Nashville back in 2018.
Detroit’s pride was prominently on display, with a sea of Honolulu blue packing Cadillac Square and Campus Martius to see NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell kick-off the proceedings.
Flanking the Commissioner and sending the fans into a frenzy were Detroit Lions players Jarred Goff and Aiden Hutchinson, Lions greats Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson, and legendary Detroit rapper Eminem.
April 26, 2024 ~ It was a fantastic night in Detroit, with 275,000 fans setting an all-time attendance record for the first night of an NFL Draft. 760 WJR’s Guy Gordon, Lloyd Jackson, and Jamie Edmonds talk with Visit Detroit President and CEO Claude Molinari about the incredible turnout in Downtown Detroit, and how fans can catch rounds two through seven this weekend! Photo: Kirby Lee ~ USA Today Network
(CONTINUED) The evening continued to set records, with the first 14 selections being offensive players, a stat that surpassed the previous record of seven set back in 2021.
Of the offensive players, quarterbacks were high among them, tying a 1983 record of six total quarterbacks selected in the first round. The list of QBs included Caleb Williams (No. 1 overall, Chicago), Jayden Daniels (No. 2, Washington), Drake Maye (No. 3, New England), Michael Penix Jr. (No. 8, Atlanta), J.J. McCarthy (No. 10, Minnesota), and Bo Nix (No. 12, Denver).
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(CONTINUED) NFL Draft first round father/son lineage was also on display. Wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. was selected No. 4 overall, following in the footsteps of his father, NFL Pro Football Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison Sr., who was selected in the first round of the 1996 NFL Draft. Also of note, tackle Joe Alt was selected at No. 5 overall, following his father, John Alt into the NFL, who was selected first-round back in the 1984 NFL Draft.
NFL Draft excitement continues in Downtown Detroit through Saturday.
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