2010 NFL Draft expands to three days, moves to primetime

by Fooch on Jul 23, 2009 2:35 PM PDT in Draft Comment 38 comments

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has officially notified teams that the NFL Draft is a-changin. Beginning in 2010, the NFL Draft will start Thursday April 22 and end Saturday April 24. Thursday April 22 will consist of just the first round, beginning at 7:30pm Eastern/4:30pm Pacific. Friday April 23 will consist of rounds two and three starting at 6:30pm Eastern/3:30pm Pacific. Saturday April 24 will consist of rounds four through seven and will kick off at 10am Eastern/7am Pacific.

Apparently 39 milion people watched the 2009 NFL Draft. That numer is probably a bit nebulous as I don't know if that number includes someone who flipped on ESPN or the NFL Network for 5 minutes for a quick update. Either way, the draft has become a wildly popular event and I'm not surprised that the NFL wants to get some of that weekday primetime advertising money.

Commissioner Goodell had the following to say:

"We continue to look for ways to make the draft more accessible to more fans," Goodell said in a statement. "Moving the first round to prime time on Thursday night will make the first round of the draft available to fans on what is typically the most-watched night of television."

Anybody buy that? Obviously there's money to be had here, but on top of that, does that improve access to the draft? Given that it was airing on Saturday and Sunday I don't know. But, nonetheless, it is happening. Personally I liked the idea of powering through a weekend of draft talk. At the same time, spreading this over three days gives us a chance to take a breath and get some more quality analysis out there for you. In the end do you see this as a good thing, a bad thing, or indifferent?

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NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

this ruins one of my favorite days of the year – draft saturday. gone is getting together with the guys to drink all damn day and watch the draft. now I’ll have to go to work the next day. What a joke. wow I almost just blatantly ignored the site protocol right there.

Still defending Rich Aurilia, and the Niners' classic unis

by wjackalope on Jul 23, 2009 3:08 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

oh I did say the d- word didn't I?

Still defending Rich Aurilia, and the Niners' classic unis

by wjackalope on Jul 23, 2009 3:09 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

D-word

In your instance, given the circumstances it’s probably acceptable.

by Fooch on Jul 23, 2009 3:21 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

This sucks.

Rafael Rodriguez: #8 on our list and batting .326 in Scottsdale...which I believe has be renamed Rafaelsdale.

by BrianBokake on Jul 23, 2009 3:10 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I kind of like the idea

At least only having 1 round on Thursday night won’t give wjackalope too much time to get totally plastered.

Don't sweat it. I'm illiterate.

by methodrampage on Jul 23, 2009 3:13 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I'm so unhappy

Still defending Rich Aurilia, and the Niners' classic unis

by wjackalope on Jul 23, 2009 6:00 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm gonna have to take the day off and get plastered anyway

Still defending Rich Aurilia, and the Niners' classic unis

by wjackalope on Jul 23, 2009 6:02 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs

+1

that’s the spirit(s)

by Andrew Davidson on Jul 23, 2009 6:14 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Hmmm...

Why not the whole week, instead? One day per round.

"The voice of the intellect is a soft one, but it does not rest until it has gained a hearing"

by Jeff_Fuller_49 on Jul 23, 2009 3:38 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Quit bitching already

Take your ball and go home.

by Italia1970 on Jul 23, 2009 3:56 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

really?

So people on the West Coast who work till 5 or 6 are going to miss some of the draft and they shouldn’t complain about it?

by Fooch on Jul 23, 2009 4:03 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Don't mind him

He doesn’t care because he’s not affected by the change. Burger King affords him a very flexible work schedule.

by ninjasocks on Jul 23, 2009 10:24 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

+1

by Andrew Davidson on Jul 24, 2009 10:08 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Good call

This might tie into another topic that is close to our hearts- the league fund to help finance stadiums. Since that fund is depleted, the additional revenues from prime time TV might help to refill those coffers. That would go a long way to help with the new stadium plan, as I think that SF would be the first in mind to get access to those funds.

by 49er Mancub on Jul 23, 2009 4:02 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Huh. This sounds pretty meh to me.

My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.

by howtheyscored on Jul 23, 2009 4:40 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

More anti-West Coast bias

The draft starts at 4:30 PST on Thursday. If I get off work at 5:30pm, go home and turn on the tube at 6:30pm, I’m going to miss the first 10 picks or so. Arguably the most exciting part of the draft is going to be buried in drive-time.

by ninjasocks on Jul 23, 2009 5:14 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

There was talk about

this happening for a couple years now, but I didn’t think they’d move the first round to Thursday night. I figured it would’ve been a Friday Night thing, and a bit later on in the evening. Thursday at 7:30pm, doesn’t have the same ring as Friday at 8:00pm.

I love watching the draft with a group of friends, and this won’t alter that at all. While I agree it is a great day to have it on a saturday afternoon, I look forward to the prime time airing of round 1, adds a bit of excitement in my opinion.

by Andrew Davidson on Jul 23, 2009 5:41 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Friday isn’t a good night for TV

by bignerd on Jul 23, 2009 7:52 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Neither is Saturday

Everybody’s out then. I imagine that’s why they moved the draft.

by Brendan Scolari on Jul 23, 2009 7:56 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

i don't like it

but i’m not as pissed as a lot of the people commenting on the Yahoo! Sports article about it. it’s like someone just moved their birthday to Christmas Eve.

I take full responsibility for my irresponsibility.

by these3words on Jul 23, 2009 6:33 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

link?

by Fooch on Jul 23, 2009 6:54 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

link:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;ylt=Aj0x12PuoKEuUuXWKfD2pThMMQF?slug=ap-nfldraft-primetime&prov=ap&type=lgns

the comments are in order of most recent on top, so they keep changing.

I take full responsibility for my irresponsibility.

by these3words on Jul 24, 2009 4:55 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I like spreading the draft over 3 days

More time to enjoy it. ;-)

But I don’t know about having the first few rounds on a weekday, that seems like a big change. Then again, I have missed most of the first day in the draft the last two years anyways, so I end up DVR’ing it and watching it later. My biggest concern with that is just that people end up spoiling who all the high picks are (plus who the Niners picked). At first I was like, “NOOO!!!”, but now that I think about it more I guess I’m pretty indifferent to the move.

by Brendan Scolari on Jul 23, 2009 7:35 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Maybe this move will improve McCloughan’s drafting a 2nd day starter rate.

by bignerd on Jul 23, 2009 7:54 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Can't get any worse! ;-)

by Brendan Scolari on Jul 23, 2009 7:55 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Maybe this move will improve McCloughan’s drafting a 2nd day starter rate.

It’ll definitely open the door for more trades, as there will be more time to reassess the first round results and work on dealing a second round pick.

by sfgfan on Jul 24, 2009 8:54 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I like it, except the time

I never get to watch the draft because I’m always doing stuff on weekends. I usually have to grab whatever updates I can throughout the day but I don’t see much of it. I like the idea of a weekday night.

That said, It’s WAY too early. 730 is too early for the east coast, and 430 is downright insulting for the west coast. I live in the east, and thats too early for me to make it home sometimes. I can’t imagine how impossible it is for you guys out west. I would say 830/9pm eastern is when it should be. I’m not sure if the networks have anything to do with it, but I’m positive there isnt anything bigger than the NFL draft going on Thursday at 9pm on ESPN.

If I gotta play, I'm gonna play 'till I win,
Since I gotta be here, I can´t wait to begin

by albertoleecho on Jul 23, 2009 7:58 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

could be they don't want to compete with

NBC and other networks thursday night lineups. Especially that time of year when most of the shows are winding down and it’s end-of-the-season craziness.

Still defending Rich Aurilia, and the Niners' classic unis

by wjackalope on Jul 24, 2009 10:20 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

NBA draft starts at 4:30 PST

I think I will adjust. The 2nd day Friday is really going to ruin it for me.

by bignerd on Jul 23, 2009 8:05 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

As well as ruling out anyone on the West Coast who works ...

… it also means fans in Europe won’t be able to watch it. The first round will begin at half-past midnight on a day when most people will have work the following day. Given the NFL’s desire to expand into Europe, it does look a little odd. This has effectively ensured that west coast fans and European fans cannot watch the first round.

Then again, it could work out like this for me … the Niners are obviously going to win the Superbowl this year, so they will be on the clock last in the first round, but they also have Carolina’s pick, and in my twisted mind, that’ll be the first pick, since God is a Niner and he’ll ensure the Panthers go 0-16 so we can select the best QB in the 2010 draft. Therefore I can stay up very late to see our opening first-round pick, then go to bed, then get up very early to see the 32nd pick of the first-round, in which we’ll take an OLB.

You don’t think I’m being distant from reality in any way here do you?

by LondonNiner on Jul 24, 2009 12:45 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

spot on

Go 49ers

by iaalexeeff on Jul 24, 2009 1:00 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

That works out great

And west coast people can catch the niners first pick at #1 at the office, then be home by the niners next pick at #32

If I gotta play, I'm gonna play 'till I win,
Since I gotta be here, I can´t wait to begin

by albertoleecho on Jul 24, 2009 6:15 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Correction

We’ve already determined that God is not a 49ers fan. He told Reggie White to go to Green Bay and he told Kurt Warner to stay in Arizona.

by Fooch on Jul 24, 2009 7:54 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

but

that could just mean God doesn’t like Reggie White or Kurt Warner.

by Andrew Davidson on Jul 24, 2009 10:09 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Fantastic ...

… thanks chaps. I’m glad we’ve organised that. Now over to the 49ers and the Panthers to make it happen. Here’s to Colt McCoy with that Carolina pick at #1 …

by LondonNiner on Jul 24, 2009 6:48 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

This sucks

Rather than devoting a Saturday to the draft, I have to rush home and try to watch it after work. This may attract a few more casual viewers (and, in turn, ad revenue), but it alienates existing fans, particularly on the West Coast.

Also, I cannot tell you how much I loathe the idea of listening to Chris Berman for 3 days instead of 2.

Never forget: I am a complete idiot

by Exhibit G on Jul 24, 2009 12:06 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

TV

Reason enough to invest in the NFL Network for a few days

by Fooch on Jul 24, 2009 4:30 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Rodger Goodell

Probably did it to raise rating and excitement to me It doesn’t make a difference cuz I only watch the first round or until my team picks.

Amazing, Jamarcus Russell hands off to McFadden who pitches it back to Russell who finds Darrius Heyward Bey in the Middle of the Field wide open 30, 20,10,5 Touchdown Raiders! Amazing. This telecast is Brought to you by Cable.

by nishal26 on Jul 25, 2009 4:01 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs