ESPN and NFL Network once again have "agreed that their staffers will not tip picks on social media" during the first round of the NFL Draft prior to Commissioner Roger Goodell announcing the pick at the podium, according to Richard Deitsch of SI.com. ESPN Senior Coordinating Producer Seth Markman said that ESPN staffers "will not tweet out picks in the first round ahead of Goodell." Markman: "We will allow our staffers to tweet any behind the scenes conversations teams are having, trade talks, debates, etc., but what we won’t allow is for them to flat out give away draft picks before the commissioner announces them. As I have said in the past, our viewers have overwhelmingly told us that they do not want us to spoil the drama of the draft in any way. This goes for Twitter, too. I realize that there are those who disagree with this approach, but we are not in the business of angering our loyal viewers and I personally like the unspoiled nature of this event." NFL Network Coordinating Producer Charlie Yook said that network staffers "will not be tipping any picks on Twitter on the second round as well" (SI.com, 4/23).
TAKING A DIFFERENT ROUTE: AWFUL ANNOUNCING's Andrew Bucholtz notes Yahoo Sports, which has done streaming shows for other events like NBA free agency, is now doing one for the NFL Draft, "providing live coverage on both Day One and Day Two." Unlike ESPN and NFL Network, Yahoo said that it "may break some news of picks before they're officially announced." Yahoo Sports Executive Producer Alan Springer said, "After the success of the The Vertical’s NBA Draft Show last year we realized there was definitely a market for our type of livecast of the NFL draft." Springer said that a "key lesson from the NBA Draft coverage is that their coverage can be a primary source for fans, not just something they’re also looking at on a second screen." Springer: "We can announce a pick before the commissioner does -- if we know the pick -- and supply strong, informed opinion with no holding back" (AWFULANNOUNCING.com, 4/25). SI.com's Deitsch noted SI has an NFL Draft show today "running on SI.com and Facebook that looks pretty cool." The show will be "anchored by Maggie Gray, Andy Staples and Albert Breer, with a second set featuring Pro Football Focus staffers Steve Palazzolo and Mike Renner." SI's draft show goes live at 7:45pm ET (SI.com, 4/25). NFL streaming partner TuneIn will broadcast live from the NFL Draft with its show, "NFL No Huddle," with Brian Webber, Kordell Stewart and guest draft analyst Dan Shonka. TuneIn also will provide live audio of NFL Network’s NFL Draft coverage (TuneIn).
LOVE ME TWO TIMES: NFL.com's Ed Sherman noted Yook "plans to highlight all that Philadelphia has to offer" in NFL Net's coverage. The main set, hosted by Rich Eisen, will be at the "iconic steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum." NFL Network also will be "set up at the Franklin Institute, where the draft will take place." There will be "plenty of shots of historic places in town along with many servings of Philly cheesesteak sandwiches." Yook said, "If the weather holds up, it's going to be very impressive. We're going to show the vibrancy of the city. I think it will shine literally and figuratively" (NFL.com, 4/24). In Philadelphia, Bob Ford wrote the worst part for Philadelphians during the NFL Draft "will be watching the coverage." Ford: "That's because television likes nothing better than easy material, and, boy, there is no city in the world that provides as brimming a satchel of handy clichés, memes, tropes, and banalities for the grinning, glib idiots of the airwaves as our very own City of Brotherly Love" (PHILLY.com, 4/25).
WHERE TO FROM HERE? The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Jason Gay writes the NFL Draft is the "apogee of the non-sporting event sporting event." It is nothing but a "series of phone calls between franchises, agents and players, artfully packaged and bedazzled into several days’ worth of television theater." The NFL "built something giant out of nothing." As TV concepts go, it is "nothing short of Hall of Fame brilliant." However, the Draft could "soon peak -- or has peaked -- as a cultural moment." Gay: "I’ll never dispute the must-see TV of live action like a Super Bowl or Steph Curry. But in 2017, does anyone need to be butt-bound on the couch to take in the draft?" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 4/27).
