The Broncos are making their intentions clear: They want to host an NFL Draft.
This year’s draft, which begins Thursday at 8 p.m. ET in Chicago, is the first time since 1964 the event has been held outside New York. Eleven cities expressed some degree of interest in hosting this year’s three-day affair before the NFL chose the Windy City.
MORE: SN's NFL Draft Central | Kurt Warner on the draft | Latest State of the Draft
Now, the Broncos want a piece of the action. Broncos president and chief executive officer Joe Ellis told the Denver Post the team has contacted the NFL several times to express interest in hosting a draft.
“We have let the commissioner's office know that we want it and are eager to host it in Denver,” Ellis said. “It has become a signature event in sports and the intrigue and the hype leading up to the draft week has made it so. We certainly believe after talking with Visit Denver (president) Richard Scharf that Denver would be a worthy choice to host NFL draft week.”
Ellis and a couple of other Broncos executives are in Chicago to study the process involved in hosting the event. In the meantime, the team has continued to remind the NFL office in conversations and emails that Denver would be an ideal host city.
The NFL has not announced any future draft sites.
“The league is playing their cards pretty close to the vest, as they should (in terms of future locations),” Ellis said. “But we definitely want it.”