The NFL draft may not boast Super Bowl TV ratings, but its crowd certainly roars like one. The league proudly announced that 600,000 fans attended the event in Green Bay. While it doesn't quite reach last year's record-breaking 775,000 in Detroit, it's a remarkable feat for the smaller city.
However, amidst the celebrations, let's not overlook the debate around these sky-high numbers. The notion that 600,000 fans flooded Green Bay at once is misleading. This figure amalgamates the total attendance across three days.
The head count likely saw significant overlap. Fans could come and go freely, meaning each entry into the draft area was tallied as a separate visit. So, a fan making multiple trips could inflate the numbers easily. Case in point — Green Bay Press-Gazette's Richard Ryman reported Thursday night's attendance at 205,000 compared to Saturday's 220,000.
Eyewitnesses of Saturday's events noticed the disparity in crowd size compared to the bustling Thursday night. The fluctuating crowd over six hours on Saturday suggests duplication was at play, not a sudden surge of attendees.
While undeniably impressive, these figures raise questions about their accuracy. Similar patterns likely played out in Detroit and other host cities with open perimeters. Counting every re-entry as a new fan blurs the actual picture.
There are methods to estimate the true, unique attendance accurately, but taming the colossus of inflated figures dims the grandeur of an otherwise spectacular turnout.
