One of the key boxes to check during the pre-draft process relates to the specific players who will be attending the draft in person.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, invitations to specific players are being finalized this week.
Hall of Fame executive Gil Brandt has handled the invitation process in the past. Currently, the league office is handling the invitations through the league office.
The presence of players for a photo op and a bear hug has become a critical aspect of the made-for-TV aspect of this ultimate reality show about nothing for the ultimate reality show that is the NFL. The NFL wants/needs plenty of the best of the best prospects to choose to attend and be introduced both before the draft and immediately after their names are called.
Plenty still do. Some pass, either because they choose to be elsewhere or they are concerned about the potential impact of a round-one slide suffered by the likes of Aaron Rodgers in 2005, Brady Quinn in 2007, and Geno Smith in 2013.
Players don’t get appearance fees for attending. Yes, their travel expenses are paid and one or more family members are invited, too. But that’s it.
Why not offer them more than that? Put simply, the NFL doesn’t have to do it as long as key prospects choose to go for free.
If/when the top prospects would ever band together and refuse to go without an attendance fee, they’d all get attendance fees.