The NFL draft has become such a production that the league starts planning each one about two and a half years in advance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Starting last summer, some of the main partners in the 2026 draft, set to be held this week in Pittsburgh, began meeting regularly to discuss the planning and logistics and the impact the draft would have on the city at large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These meetings included representatives from the NFL, the Pittsburgh Steelers, the tourism agency Visit Pittsburgh, the Pittsburgh Public School District and officials from city transportation and public safety, according to Wayne N. Walters, district superintendent, and a public school official who attended the meetings, Merecedes J. Williams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In February, Williams said, the group began receiving \u201cmore high-level updates of information than we had ever gotten,\u201d on road closures and the number of visitors expected. Local officials have said they expect around 500,000 to 700,000 people; Pittsburgh only has a population of 300,000. Traffic and transportation would be disrupted, security heightened. For three days, the draft would essentially consume downtown Pittsburgh, as it had in other cities in years past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In these meetings, Williams said, the group discussed the possibility of schools going remote during the draft. She said they had a \u201cthoughtful conversation,\u201d going through the pros and cons, and then she reported all this information back to the superintendent and district leadership. \u201cWe then made the executive decision,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In mid-March, Pittsburgh Public Schools announced that students would move to remote learning for three days this week, Wednesday through Friday, while the draft is in town. State standardized testing was also scheduled to begin this week for some students, and now that would be adjusted, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe got a lot of backlash and heat from it,\u201d Walters told NBC News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To some, that might be understandable. The draft had essentially shut down physical schooling for more than 19,000 students, as if it were a snow day. Many parents, who didn\u2019t have flexible work schedules, were being inconvenienced for \u2026 football?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is not easy to make a decision like this,\u201d Walters said. \u201cBut this came in collaboration with a variety of partners. We had Visit Pittsburgh, we had the city of Pittsburgh, we had the NFL, we had the Pittsburgh Steelers, we had our public safety department and just a variety of other partners really sort of informing this decision for us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When asked about that characterization, an NFL spokesman told NBC News, \u201cThe league played no role in the school\u2019s decision.” The spokesman disputed that the league had taken part in the described meetings, too. The Steelers and Visit Pittsburgh did not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A spokeswoman for Pittsburgh Public Schools followed up, saying that information shared in those draft planning meetings “may have been conveyed through intermediary partners or coordinating organizations working closely with the NFL, such as the Pittsburgh Steelers and Visit Pittsburgh.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She added that the school district “cannot speak to [the NFL’s] internal staffing or representation” at the meetings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Whatever the case, Walters had taken everything into careful consideration. He heard about the road closures, the traffic, the security and worried about his students. Many use public transportation and some crisscross the city to get to school. \u201cIt becomes a nightmare really for transportation, where students may be waiting for hours for their [bus] to show up,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd that really creates a safety issue and a disruption and a concern that we want to address.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the same time, Walters said, the school district was \u201crecognizing that this is an exciting moment for the city.\u201d He wasn\u2019t recommending students and parents attend draft events, but he said, \u201cremote learning gives that flexibility for families who want to participate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This wasn’t the first time an NFL draft had disrupted school, either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last year, Green Bay, Wisconsin, hosted the draft, which reportedly drew about 360,000 unique attendees. For reference, the town has a population of about 100,000 people. The Green Bay Area Public School District went so far as to close its schools during the draft; the district made up the time by starting the school year a few days earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lori Blakeslee, the school district\u2019s director of communications, said they considered many of the same factors Pittsburgh had: student safety, traffic concerns. She also said closing the schools \u201cprovided possibly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our staff to volunteer and our students to participate\u201d in the draft festivities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leading up to the decision, she said, the school district had \u201cminimal conversations, mostly with the Packers, not really with the [NFL],\u201d about plans for the event. \u201cThey didn\u2019t direct what the decision should be,\u201d she added. \u201cThat was our decision to make.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At least one NFL executive sees a trend forming. \u201cThe draft is closing public school for two days \u2014 that just shows you the size of [the] draft,\u201d Jon Barker, the NFL\u2019s global head of major events production, told NBC News. \u201cIt kind of shows you where [the] draft is today. That an entire community is going to stop and, for those three days, they\u2019re going to focus on football.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cClosing public schools has just become part of what draft is these days,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From 1965 to 2014, the draft had one location: New York City. The league held it at various hotels and, in later years, at iconic locations such as the theater at Madison Square Garden and then Radio City Music Hall. In 2015, the league took the draft on the road to Chicago and held it in Grant Park. About 200,000 people reportedly attended. The NFL knew it had struck gold. The event returned to Chicago the following year and even more people showed up. The draft has rotated to a new city every year since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Barker took over the event\u2019s production before the 2019 iteration in Nashville, which drew a reported 600,000 people over a three-day span. That year, the league booked live music acts, really leaning into the city\u2019s \u201cMusic City\u201d reputation. On Saturday, the draft\u2019s final day, the league had country music star Dierks Bentley perform a 75-minute set.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe added that element of music to the draft stage and turned it into a festival,\u201d Barker said. \u201cThat\u2019s when I think it really exploded, and that\u2019s when we knew that this could only get bigger and bigger and bigger.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This week in Pittsburgh, Nelly, 2Chainz and Steve Aoki will perform concerts, as will local sons Wiz Khalifa and Bret Michaels. Fans will also have access to the Steelers\u2019 stadium. They can kick field goals, run the 40-yard dash or sit on the grass and watch the draft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The draft is the one NFL event that draws fans from all 32 teams, hence the big crowds. This time of year, every fan has hope. They\u2019ve watched college football, analyzed their team\u2019s roster and, Barker said, \u201cwe all have opinions on what we think our team needs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Count among them Corey O\u2019Connor, the 41-year-old mayor of Pittsburgh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
O\u2019Connor is as Pittsburgh as they come. He grew up in the same house his mother had, and he attended Central Catholic High School and Duquesne University within a few miles of each other. In his youth, his father had one season ticket to Steelers games. But the family often went to games together; the rest of them would \u201csneak into the games,\u201d O\u2019Connor said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Remember, this was back in the \u201890s, before ticketing went digital. \u201cWe would have an old ticket underneath the actual ticket,\u201d O\u2019Connor explained. Then as the usher went to rip the tickets, the O\u2019Connors would feed on the commotion of the crowd. \u201cMy dad would say, \u2018When you get in \u2014 run. And I\u2019ll meet you at the seats,\u2019 \u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf the usher said, \u2018Where\u2019s the ticket for the kid?\u2019 my dad\u2019s response was, \u2018Well, what kid? I didn\u2019t see a kid,\u2019\u201d O\u2019Connor said. \u201cAnd by that time, I\u2019m gone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His father, Bob O\u2019Connor, was a local politician who went on to become mayor of Pittsburgh in 2006. He died of a rare brain cancer less than a year after taking office. About two decades later, Corey ran and was elected mayor, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now, a few months into his term, Corey O\u2019Connor is leading the city as it hosts the NFL draft. In a twist of fate, he is now coordinating with local and state agencies, as well as the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and the NFL to ensure the event is secure. (Both O\u2019Connor and Barker said that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement would not be involved in the event.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause of what\u2019s going on, on the world stage, there\u2019s some additional security concerns,\u201d O\u2019Connor told NBC News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s why the city is closing roads and bridges around the event site. \u201cCan\u2019t take any chances of somebody, a terrorist or somebody like that, wanting to do something bad,\u201d O\u2019Connor said. \u201cI\u2019m not sleeping a lot. You\u2019re just: \u2018What about this? Did we think about that parking lot?\u2019 Your mind is constantly going about what could possibly happen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But those closures will have ripple effects. Schools are going remote and traffic is expected to be gnarly. Driving in Pittsburgh is already a challenge without the crowds. \u201cIt\u2019s a tough city to navigate,\u201d said Trisha Pittman, the traffic anchor for WPXI, a local TV station. \u201cThere\u2019s people that have lived here for 30 years and still can\u2019t figure out where they\u2019re going.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The city famously features lots of bridges and tunnels, which creates bottlenecks for the flow of traffic. The city\u2019s topography doesn\u2019t help either. Pittsburgh is not flat; lots of roads are elevated. \u201cYou see the road you want to be on, but you can\u2019t figure out how to get there,\u201d Pittman said. Some drivers get so confused, they end up heading onto wrong-way roads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now add 700,000 visitors, many of whom, presumably, have never visited. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be a lot,\u201d O\u2019Connor said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be a great stress test for our transit system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
City officials are choosing to look at the positives. The draft is a chance to showcase Pittsburgh and how it\u2019s evolved. Outsiders still know it as the \u201cSteel City,\u201d and whenever the Steelers play on national television, producers inevitably show a steel mill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPittsburgh is not that smoky city anymore,\u201d said Walters, the superintendent. \u201cIt\u2019s vibrant, it\u2019s innovation, it\u2019s a health care hub. It\u2019s an artificial intelligence hub. It\u2019s robotics. There are major universities here and just a vibrant cultural scene.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
O\u2019Connor said, in his opinion, Pittsburgh has \u201cone of the best views in the world,\u201d when your car exits the Fort Pitt Tunnel and the Pittsburgh skyline unfolds before you. He urged visitors to \u201cpause and take a look,\u201d as they visit the city this week. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of good stories that you can kind of take in while you\u2019re stuck in traffic,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n