Packers: NFL Draft moves to prime time, becomes three-day process
GREEN BAY -- Well, it's official. The NFL Draft is now a three-day affair that kicks off in prime time.
The league just announced that the 2010 draft will start on Thursday, April 22 at 6:30 p.m. Central time, with the second and third rounds on Friday, April 23 starting at 5:30 pm Central time. The draft will then conclude with the fourth through seventh rounds on Saturday, April 24, beginning at 9 am Central time.
The draft will continue to be televised by ESPN and NFL Network and again be held at Radio City Music Hall in New York.
“We continue to look for ways to make the draft more accessible to more fans,” said NFL commissioner Roger 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.”
The 2009 NFL Draft (Saturday, April 25-Sunday, April 26) drew a record 39 million viewers on NFL Network, ESPN and ESPN2. According to the league, total viewership of the draft increased 66 percent from 2001 to 2009 (from 23.5 million to 39 million).
The first round of last year’s draft on ESPN and NFL Network drew a combined average of 6.3 million viewers.
The draft was a Saturday-Sunday event from 1995 through last year. It was held on Sunday-Monday from 1988 through '94.
Here's the date and time breakdown from the league:
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2010 NFL Draft
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Date
|
Time*
|
|
Round 1
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Thursday, April 22
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7:30-11:00 PM ET
|
|
Rounds 2-3
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Friday, April 23
|
6:30-11:00 PM ET
|
|
Rounds 4-7
|
Saturday, April 24
|
10:00 AM – 6:00 PM ET
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