This past weekend I got to go to the NFL Draft again. Some of you are thinking..wow you are so lucky or stop your bragging. There were many highs and lows this weekend and they had nothing to do with which players got selected by which teams. First full disclosure, this was my fourth draft attended (really three as I didn’t get in the first year I tried back in 2006 , but ate at ESPN Zone down the street ). The vibe in Radio City Music Hall was off..way off. Disorganized lines filled with internet reservations, wristbands, and the like, were in play as usual. When my fiance and I got to Radio City on Friday at 2:15 pm, a line of ten fans had formed..ten! This wasn’t 2009′s draft as it would have been 1,000 people deep by that time.
It was fine with me that after waking up at 3am, taking a bus, and then a train to get to NYC that we had a shot to get in the draft on Day Two. The hatred was in the air though. People were already complaining about Roger Goodell. When we finally got in Radio City, you knew when Goodell was on stage as the boos poured from the crowd. Heck, I joined in. For a minute, I almost felt sorry for him. He is the spokesman for 31 wealthy owners and one shareholder corporation, the Green Bay Packers. Do these teams and players realize what they are doing? I looked around and saw Radio City 2/3 full. There were more people watching my local professional AA baseball team play than the Draft. Don’t get me wrong, the Draft was fun. I got to meet Cecil Lammey from footballguys.com, Denver sports radio and TV personality on Friday. Cecil was awesome as we talked for a while and left me with the words “be an ambassador for the game.” I wish I could have told that to everyone on each side of the lockout.
Day Three got a little bit brighter as I knew that I was hanging amongst the die-hards. Getting in Radio City took about 10 minutes, people sat anywhere they wanted and spread out. Andy Garda, also from footballguys.com, sent me a text and we talked for a bit. It’s just great talking football with other passionate fans like Andy and Cecil the day before. “Wow there have been some crazy things so far” Garda uttered. Now that was the truth. Day Three was long and grinding with the seven and a half hours that rounds 4-7 selections filled. I have no idea how the NFLN and ESPN cast and crew do it.
I direct messaged Jason LaCanfora on twitter hoping that I could say hello and he sent back “looking forward to it brother.” After the Draft was over, we were being asked to leave Radio City and on the way out Adam Schefter ran right by me. One of the head security guys told me where Jason would be heading out and within 5 minutes there was Jason LaCanfora and Mike Lombardi. Jason was very gracious and spent, it seemed, 10 minutes talking football with me. Lombardi shook my hand, but looked exhausted as did Jason. Jason and I promised to talk again on the Twitter Roundtable, the radio show I co-host and produce, once the lockout had ended. When you look up class act in the dictionary, it will read Jason LaCanfora. I thought the day couldn’t get any better…I was wrong.
My fiance and I were meeting my twitter buddy, Susan Shan, out for a late dinner. Susan is as well-connected as sports bloggers get and we were sharing stories enjoying dinner. I was still rocking my white Lawrence Timmons jersey when the waiter came over and informed me that someone was wearing a Steelers Super Bowl ring a few tables over. Just happy being close to greatness and seeing that the owner of the ring was enjoying dinner, I smiled and continued with my meal. About 30 minutes later, the assistant Steelers strength and conditioning coach stopped by MY table. He shook MY hand, let me try on the Super Bowl ring as well as let Susan try it on, as she is a Steelers fan. Tara wasn’t allowed as she is a Patriots fan, bad mojo! The coach and I talked for a few minutes about how things were going and the hope of the lockout ending soon. And when I got home, I found out my co-owner of the site, Bryan Fontaine, was going to be a dad. Now that was an incredible three days!
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