Fans can participate in multiple activities at the NFL Draft Experience in downtown Detroit
Hundreds of thousands of fans are expected to pour into downtown Detroit for the NFL draft Thursday through Saturday to see musical performances by major stars or engage in a variety of football-themed activities as the NFL selects new players.
In Hart Plaza, visitors can enjoy the NFL Draft Experience, which will offer multiple immersive exhibits, photo opportunities with the Vince Lombardi Trophy awarded to the Super Bowl winner each year, and a youth-focused Play 60 Zone. Up the street, at 1001 Woodward, fans can find exclusive merchandise at the NFL Shop presented by Visa.
Right off of Jefferson Avenue, the Draft Experience is a re-creation of the Ford Field experience. The activation includes games such as Lions-themed skeeball and reaction relay to see who has the fastest hands and End Zone Ink for airbrushed tattoos and jerseys on display. The Detroit Lions will have multiple activation spaces within the venue for fans of all ages to participate in Lions-themed games and activities.
Get a hero's introduction
"We expect over 20,000 fans to make their way through throughout the weekend with this experience," said Emily Griffin, Lions senior vice president for marketing and brand. "There's all sorts of different photo opportunities and interactive games, the opportunity to check out our brand new uniforms that we unveiled last week. I think one of the marquee components that we're most excited about is our hero's entrance. Fans that come in will get announced and introduced into the activation just like our players do on Sunday at Ford Field to our frenzied and passionate fan base."
Visitors can expect to see a number of Arab American-owned businesses throughout the draft footprint and experience zone, along with a prayer hall on the west side of Hart Plaza, a first for the draft, Griffin said.
"For the first time ever, they will have these prayer halls and I think that their effort to understand our community and the makeup of this community, and make this draft unique to Detroit and the surrounding area is exceptional. We're very proud of that," Griffin said.
What's your 40-yard dash time?
Deeper into Hart Plaza, fans will see a gallery of football memorabilia, the Lombardi Trophy, all 57 Super Bowl rings on display, an autograph stage, along with local vendors like Shibam Coffee and Good Cakes and Bakes, which were present for a media tour Wednesday. Several local concession stands will be placed near the UAW-Ford National Programs Center adjacent to Hart Plaza and farther north near the draft theater.
More: Bringing your kids to the NFL draft in Detroit? Here are a few places to take them.
Nicki Ewell, NFL senior director of events, said fans can participate in a variety of interactive events, including a digital 40-yard dash against Derrick Henry and Saquon Barkley, a vertical jump and Hail Mary experience by the riverfront.
"We also have our play football field at Corner Ballpark," Ewell said. "We have our flag football field there so flags, skills and drills for kids ages 6 through 14 can be played there, but we also have a watch party there."
The Lions' success this past year, making it to the NFC championship game, amplified the experience for the draft, Griffin said.
"It's made everything better. We're so proud of the incredible season that we had, our first home playoff win in over 30 years, and we know that access to Ford Field and the Lions game-day experience is going to be increasingly more difficult to access. And that was part of our strategy here. For over three days, we expect hundreds of thousands of people in downtown Detroit and (want) to give them an opportunity to feel what it's like to be at the stadium on game day when they may not be able to necessarily was very important to us," Griffin said.
Dana Afana is the Detroit city hall reporter for the Free Press. Contact: dafana@freepress.com. Follow her: @DanaAfana.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Look inside the NFL Draft Experience in Detroit's Hart Plaza
