I hope you guys aren’t sick of all the video coverage of how the city of Cleveland is handling preparations for the 2021 NFL Draft, because I’m enjoying making them! Today was a beautiful 80-degree weather day. Sadly, the forecast for April 29-May 1 doesn’t look so nice, and rain is still in the forecast throughout the day on Thursday.
Earlier today, I was fortunate enough to receive a private tour of some of the inner workings of FirstEnergy Stadium. I checked in at 1:15 PM for the tour that would start at 1:30 PM. I was surprised how few people were in our tour group (seven of us), which made it a more personable experience. Because the NFL has “taken over the stadium,” the tour guides said they couldn’t give us the full tour experience — but to be honest, I got exactly what I was hoping for: a closer look at the finished draft stage!
We started off by going up to the media room — you’d think that I would’ve seen it before, but it was my first time being up there. Afterward, we were taken to the Dawg Pound to see the stadium, and then we were brought outside the stadium to an area that is secured, but nice to see some shots of the draft stage.
After the tour, I went over and checked out the latest on a few other things: the picnic tables ready for fans to be at Mall C, the helmets on display their for the final day before being moved, the entrance to the NFL Draft Experience, the logo in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and an updated shot of the Cleveland script sign, now featuring the “NFL Draft” sign beside it.
