NFL Draft

NFL Draft Events in Chicago if You Can't Get Into Selection Square

The 2015 NFL Draft takes place in Grant Park and Roosevelt University April 30 through May 2

The NFL has you covered if you can't get into Selection Square or the Auditorium Theatre for the Draft at the end of the month.

The organization will host numerous events in Grant Park, which will be transformed into Draft Town. The area will take up the space of approximatley 15 football fields, according to NFL officials.

The food area of Draft Town will be curated by Chicago chef and restaurateur Graham Elliot. Elliot will choose which food vendors and local chefs to feature, but participants can also stop by food stands operated by Billy Goat Tavern and Grill, Wow Bao, County Barbeque, Black Dog Gelato and Feast, among others.

In addition, flag football fans can get their own game on at the NFL FLAG Football Festival in Hutchinson Field on the south side of Grant Park. The first ever flag football event at the Draft will be open to about 800 adults and children aged 9 and up. Entry costs $250 per team. Teams will be sorted by age, and registration is open to everyone on a first-come, first-serve basis.

A Super Bowl museum will be erected in Grant Park and feature memorabilia from the Chicago Bears as well as the Vince Lombardi Trophy, Super Bowl rings and the conference championship trophies.

A tunnel sky-diving simulator will allow fans to fly like the legendary Bears running back Walter Payton. In Payton's honor, the device is called the "sweetness simulator" to invoke the running back's NFL nickname.

Draft Tavern will be open for the after-hours portion of the event where fans can gather to drink beer and support their teams.

A series of youth football clinics will take place in Draft Town with local coaches and NFL legends.

A few of the famous faces fans could see at various Draft events include Dick Butkus, Jim Kelly, Ickey Woods, Ty Law and Charles Haley.

Draft Town is free and open to the public. Entry into Selection Square and the Auditorium Theatre, where NFL team representatives will make their Draft decisions, is also free, but seating is limited.

Tickets for Selection Square and the Auditorium Theatre were distributed to fans at random from March 24 through April 5 via an online ticket lottery sweepstakes.

The 2015 NFL Draft takes place April 30 through May 2.

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