The NFL draft happened from April 25 to April 27th. The Cardinals had a draft party on the 26th. The party was on the great lawn by the Cardinals stadium from 4 pm-9 pm. The field had a bunch of food trucks and little games to play during the draft’s first day.
There was a designated area for kids like always at the event. On the left-hand side when walking in there was a section with football-related challenges like pushing down blocking dummies, throwing footballs into targets, rock climbing, and other inflatables for kids. There was also a zipline as well that was on the right-hand side that children could ride down. Overall it’s a family-friendly event.
There was a special event for kids 5-12 years old for cheerleading called the Jr. Cheer Mini Clinic. It was free to those kids in that age range to learn about the sport from Professional Cheerleaders!
Other activities were spread across the event as well. There was a 360 photo booth. Figures of a Cardinals Helmet and Football to pose by. Face painting and balloon making too!
The food is what to expect from an American event. Hamburgers, Hotdogs, Fries, etc. There were two VIP buildings that a person could only enter with VIP tickets while the General Admission only allowed people in the grass. The VIP buildings are also sources of food, like a restaurant ordeal. To beat the crowd, get a high-up view of the draft.
A stand beside the zipline had Cardinal players sign merchandise and take photos. They had Michael Wilson #14 a Wide Receiver, Garrett Williams #21 Center Back, and Clayton Tune #15 Back-up QuarterBack. There were also cheerleaders going around who would take pictures and sign their cheerleading banners if asked. They weren’t the only big faces, there was the owner of the Cardinals Michael Bidwill up in the VIP area.
There was a giveaway for a Kyler Murray Signed Jersey as well during the event, all people there were eligible to win and it was announced later in the night.
At the front entrance, there was also the Big Red Air Raid Siren that anyone could wind up to make some noise!
In the green, there were also some junior football vipers playing little scrimmages! They were playing for most of the draft Verrado loves to see it! If any junior football players are looking for more information about Verrado football read more from another article “Viper Football: New Coach, New Chapter” on the vipertimes!
The actual draft was quite interesting, with the number one pick overall in the first round pick from the Bears taking Caleb Williams, a quarterback from the University of Oklahoma. The Cardinals drafted twelve people in total. In round one pick four, they grabbed wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and later got edge rusher Darius Robinson pick twenty-seven via trade from the Houston Texans. The other men the Cardinals picked during the other rounds were; CB Max Melton Rutgers, RB Trey Benson, OG/OT Isaiah Adams, TE Tip Reiman CB Elijah Jones, S Dadrion Taylor-Demerson, EDGE Xavier Thomas, OT Christian Jones, WR Tejhaun Palmer, and CB Jaden Davis.
After the first round of the draft ended they blasted fireworks into the air to celebrate the draft and a turning leaf to the upcoming season.
