On the first Saturday of every month, Mark will write about a topic of interest to Packers fans and the organization and then answer five fan questions. Fans are encouraged to email Mark with their name and hometown at:
When we first started lobbying the NFL about holding the draft in Green Bay almost a decade ago, we knew that one of our strongest arguments was the tremendous support we receive from our fans. During the draft last week, our fans did not disappoint. Six hundred thousand fans attended the draft over the three days, making it the second most attended draft ever. I estimate that over 90% of the crowd was Packers fans. It was the first time in NFL history that more fans attended the draft than lived in the host city.
Our fans were everywhere during the draft week, soaking in all that the draft has to offer (the setting for the draft was a lot like Disney World, for football). One of my favorite moments was when I was introducing our first-round pick. When I started by saying "for the first time since 2002," our fans are so knowledgeable that they knew right away that we were going to draft a wide receiver (and most likely knew that it was going to be Matthew Golden). Overall, it was a special time for everyone attending the draft, and the local community and entire state will reap the benefits of this event for many years to come.
Now, on to your questions.
Thomas from Kenosha, WI
I recently watched the NFL Draft live from Green Bay, and it was truly a world-class display. Well done and thank you for representing our state and team so well! As you know (and announced), the Packers had not taken a receiver in the first round for 23 years prior to this draft. Looking back, and with the benefit of hindsight, do you think this was a mistake, and why has the strategy changed now? Go Pack Go!
I couldn't agree with you more, Thomas. We were all very pleased with the draft – and it was a true team effort. With regard to your questions, I do not think we have intentionally decided not to draft wide receivers in the first round over the years. It was just a matter of how our board fell. It is worth noting that we have drafted many excellent receivers in the second round, including Davante Adams, Greg Jennings, Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb.
George from North Mankato, MN
Congratulations Mark. You and the whole 2025 draft team deserve a big shout out for successfully hosting an estimated 600,000 football fans from around the globe. In your opinion, what was the biggest hurdle your team had to overcome to secure the draft for the Packers franchise, the city of Green Bay and the people of Wisconsin? What were your favorite moments from draft weekend? Do you think the NFL will award another draft to the Packers? Many thanks for all your achievements during your time as president!
Thanks for the shout out, George. Our local organizing committee and so many Packers employees did an excellent job, and credit must also go to the City of Green Bay, Village of Ashwaubenon, Brown County, PMI and Discover Green Bay. As I mentioned above, it was a team effort – we all knew how much it meant to the local community. In terms of the biggest hurdle, I think it was convincing the league that a small market like Green Bay could host an event as large as the NFL Draft. There were particular concerns regarding the relatively small number of hotel rooms. In addition to the drafting of Golden, I thought it was pretty special when we drafted Barryn Sorrell in the fourth round. None of us knew he was in the building, and it was great to see how excited he was to be here and be drafted by the Packers. I do think Green Bay will host another draft, although it could be a while. Twenty cities have filed applications to host the draft.
Herbert from Downers Grove, IL
Thank you for your hard work for this team over the past few decades. The draft was an amazing spectacle, and it was a top Green Bay memory for me. The energy was there all night and your announcement alongside the commissioner was the highlight of the draft.
My question is, does the team being located in Green Bay serve any logistical challenges for the team and associated groups? I know last season when we played in Brazil air travel was a big point of contention when playing the season opener in Sao Paulo. I also know that a lot of journalists that cover the Packers usually have to fly to a connecting airport whenever they travel to a Packers road game. The air travel market in the Green Bay-Appleton area is by far the smallest in the NFL and direct flights to most other markets are not offered. Does being in the smallest market by far affect the team in any unseen way?
I love to hear from Packers fans in Illinois, and you raise a great question, Herbert. Green Bay is a great place to live, but traveling to other parts of the country (and world) from here is challenging. Almost every destination is at least two flights, and the flight options have become more limited during my time living in Green Bay. It also hurts us that there is no train service to Green Bay (but we do have the National Railroad Museum here!?). We would be much better off with one airport between Green Bay and Appleton, rather than having both airports compete with each other. I know people would gladly drive 15 more minutes to go to a centralized airport to have many more flight options. At a minimum, though, the airports in Green Bay and Appleton should coordinate with each other. I recently had a league meeting in Atlanta at 2 p.m. The direct flight to Atlanta was at 5:15 a.m. from Green Bay. That would require me getting up at 3:45 a.m. and arriving very early in Atlanta, so I checked Appleton's flights to Atlanta – the only morning flight was at 5:20 a.m. These travelling issues do not really affect our team travel since we fly charter. For our players and employees, though, it does present issues as it does for everyone living in Northeast Wisconsin.
Tom D. from Viroqua, WI
Thanks for being a great leader of the Pack and have a great retirement. My question is: Why is illegal hands to the face and face mask grasping a penalty no matter the player, but "stiff arm" by a ball carrier is not a penalty? The stiff arm is impeding the defender and could cause injury, too.
Interesting observation, Tom. Because the league likes high-scoring games and always favors the offense? No, it only seems that way to us old defensive players. Actually, although it is not called often, it is a penalty if a runner stiff arms a tackler and grabs the face mask.
A question from Jeffery Hayes
Let me start by thanking you for a fantastic career with our beloved Packers. After your football career did you ever think you would go on to be the CEO for as many years as you've been?
Thanks for the question, Jeff. By the way, are you related to the former Washington punter of the same name? He was a great teammate. No, after my playing career ended, I never thought I would go on to be president of an NFL team (let alone for 17 years). I was very involved with the NFLPA (as the Washington player rep, vice president of the union and later as an employee) and was viewed as a radical. I was involved in two strikes – one as a player and one as an NFLPA employee. Washington's owner, Jack Kent Cooke, said I was a fine young man, but he didn't want me as a partner. I did, however, make a connection during that time period that helped me later. During the 1982 strike, Paul Tagliabue was an attorney for the league and a Washington season ticketholder. Although we were on opposing sides, we struck up a friendship. Many years later, when he became commissioner of the league, he contacted me (I was AD at Colgate at the time) and asked me to serve on a committee he established on player relations. This got me back involved with the league, and when the Packers position opened, I know that he was helpful in my being offered the job. I learned a valuable lesson – don't burn bridges, build them. This was also one of my father's (Big Murph) "pearls of wisdom."
