NFL commissioner Roger Goodell may not be hugging any players during the NFL Draft on Thursday night. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Goodell underwent back surgery three weeks ago but has recovered. Schefter also mentioned it’s not clear if Goodell will offer his traditional draft-day hugs.
Goodell hugging the rising NFL stars has been a tradition over the last few years. It’s still possible he could do the hugs this year, but he could play it safe and do a simple handshake. The good news for fans who attended the draft in Detroit is they can still boo the commissioner as that has also been a Draft-Day tradition.
Detroit is hosting the draft after the Lions reached the NFC Championship for the first time since 1991. Earlier this year, Goodell expressed his excitement for the draft heading to the Motor City.
“You do it your way. You show off this community the way it deserves. What you’ve done in this community is amazing. I’ve been coming here for decades,” Goodell said, per CBS News.”You see what you’ve done physically in the downtown area, but it’s really as much about the way you’ve come together.
“The public and the private sector and you’ve rallied around this community and I think the people around the world should see it. And you are going to have that opportunity. And if everyone sees what Detroit really is and the passion of the people in this community, that will be a successful draft.”
The NFL draftees who will meet Roger Goodell
But who will (probably) hug Goodell during the draft? The NFL recently announced that 13 prospects were invited to draft, including quarterbacks Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye. Williams will likely be selected No. 1 overall by the Bears. And if that happens, will Williams be emotional?
“I don’t think I am, because I’ve kind of gone over it multiple times in my head, just like I did the Heisman,” he said in an interview with NBC News. “I didn’t cry at the Heisman [ceremony]. Normally I cry after losses and big, big championship games and things like that. … But all the emotions on the field that you see, I probably won’t have those. Those are normally a bunch of adrenaline, a bunch of 60 minutes of kicking somebody’s tail.”
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