NFL Draft amid coronavirus: Peyton Manning narrates hopeful video before first pick
Former Tennessee Vols football quarterback Peyton Manning got the NFL Draft started off right. He narrated a hopeful video amid COVID-19 quarantining.
He did it again. Tennessee football legend Peyton Manning brought tears to everybody’s eyes as they got ready for the NFL Draft by narrating a video released by ESPN to uplift people’s spirits before the first pick amid this coronavirus-related quarantine that has hit everybody.
The SEC Champion with the Vols, two-time Super Bowl champion and five-time MVP with the Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos and incredible ambassador to the game had one simple message in the video: Hope. He did it in a way only he could.
That video was displayed just before the first pick of the NFL Draft, and it talked about what hope does for sports fans. It showed a variety of highlights, and towards the end, a snippet from the song “Hope” by Twista and Faith Evans played.
Tonight, a little bit of normal returns. A little bit of hope.
— ESPN (@espn) April 24, 2020
For the players. For the football family. For all of us ❤
Welcome to the 2020 #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/K1HUm0BqUw
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As everybody deals with the coronavirus outbreak that has left the whole country in quarantine, this was exactly what sports fans needed. After all, the start of baseball season has been delayed, the NBA and NHL have been suspended indefinitely and college sports, most notably March Madness, were canceled.
Because of all that, the NFL Draft is one real-time sporting even that has been able to excite lots of people. Manning was the perfect guy to narrate a video about it. The video itself, in addition to highlights from historical drafts, opened by showing empty streets and hospital visits.
From a music perspective, the song “Hope” was part of the soundtrack for the 2004 movie “Coach Carter,” which starred Samuel L. Jackson and was based on a true story. That was a very inspiring movie on its own, albeit dealing with different subject matter. Either way, it fit perfectly with this video as well.
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For the first time in a month, the NFL Draft has given sports fans something to look forward to. Even if it’s done virtually, it is still happening. Manning knew this, and he captured the emotion of everybody with what he released.