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- Mar 18, 2019
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Las Vegas won’t host the draft next month as planned. But it could get another chance in 2022.
NFL Executive Vice President Peter O’Reilly said the league still has to work it out with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, but “that is something we are considering for sure.”
“We are focused with them now on identifying a future draft to do fully and properly in Las Vegas,” O’Reilly said on a conference call.
Raiders owner Mark Davis hopes that’s the case.
“Absolutely,” Davis told Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “At some point in time, Las Vegas is going to be able to take advantage of being Las Vegas and what we have to offer here. So we’d be beyond excited for that opportunity.”
The NFL will turn the April 23-25 event into a made-for-TV virtual draft. The 2023 draft is scheduled for Cleveland and the 2023 event in Kansas City.
Davis expressed disappointment the draft won’t kickoff the Raiders’ move to Las Vegas but understands the circumstances with “health and safety always . . . number one.”
“It’s just unfortunate how everything was lined up for this to be the kickoff to the inaugural season of the Raiders in Las Vegas, and it just made so much sense, and we were all so excited about it,” Davis said. “Everyone from the governor down to the city managers and everyone else. And everyone put a lot of time and effort into making it an event that would be second to none here in Las Vegas. We were all looking forward to it, and it was just going to be so exciting.”