2010 NFL Draft may be ready for prime time, but are the fans?

by Dan Kadar on Jul 23, 2009 11:46 PM EDT

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell just can't seem to leave well enough alone when it comes to the draft.

For the the 2008 NFL Draft, Goodell moved round three to Sunday and streamlined the draft process by allowing less time for picks.

"We believe these changes will make for a more streamlined and efficient draft," Goodell said at the time.

Now, the draft will be spread over three days beginning with the first round on Thursday, April 22 at 7:30 p.m. (ET). The second and third rounds will take place beginning on April 23 at 6:30 p.m. (ET) and the final rounds on April 24 starting at 10 a.m. (ET).

If Goodell changed the length given for picks to expedite the draft process, why stretch it over more days?

It's hard to believe it's being done to make the draft "more accessible to more fans," as Goodell said Thursday.

Instead, it's almost a certainly being done to make more money. It's clear watching the draft that it's not a huge money maker, despite garnering 39 million viewers. If it was making great money for the NFL, the same commercials wouldn't air every commercial break.

That's how it is with the Super Bowl and the draft has clearly become the league's second biggest event.

How can you measure the importance of draft weekend? Well, it's almost common vernacular to refer to draft weekend as Draft Weekend. Random words have practically become a proper noun!

If Goodell wants to attract as many casual fans as possible, mess with the Pro Bowl or even the Super Bowl. The draft is for us hardcore football fans. Whatever will happen with those fans at Radio City Music Hall who sit through the entire second day? What will we do with this suddenly empty Sunday?

We enjoy sitting in front of the television for hours. We downright love blowing the last weekend in April indoors. Is it a nerdy, borderline pathetic exercise

At some point, all this fiddling by Goodell becomes a detriment to what made the NFL the best sports league in the world. And when that happens, he just might lose some of us nerds.

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So

That’s strictly my point of view about this as a fan. As a blogger or journalist, I feel somewhat differently. Perhaps I’ll put something together in the next couple of days explaining.

by Dan Kadar on Jul 23, 2009 11:49 PM EDT reply actions

As someone who works second shift during the week...

the draft has just been made less accessible to me, and I’m not too happy about it. I honestly am going to have to take those days off. No way am I missing a draft.

by TheDBroShow on Jul 24, 2009 1:04 PM EDT reply actions

DVR

its worth it

"The only yardstick for success our society has is being a champion. No one remembers anything else."

by BRIANMULHALL on Jul 24, 2009 10:34 PM EDT up reply actions

Yeah

the draft time change is not a good thing.
Especially living out West… I live in the Mountain Time Zone, and the Saturday part starts at 8 AM. And 5:30 on Thursday & 4:30 on Friday will be hard to reach due to class/work as well.

Let me just say, it’s becoming harder and harder to, as a fan, support Goodell’s moves. It’s clearly all about the money now, and it’s becoming harder for those that have been following the draft almost religiously for a while to support the changes he’s been making to the draft.

True Blue Jazz
Thoughts From The Couch
I'm on Twitter
RIP Nick Adenhart. 4/9/09

by UtesFan89 on Jul 24, 2009 1:49 PM EDT reply actions

As someone who lives in the Eastern time zone, I can’t imagine watching sports anywhere else. Who wants to wake up that early? Especially after getting ones drink on during the first day of the draft!

I wonder if Roger Goodell struts around in an old suit worn by the “Million Dollar Man” Ted Diabiase.

by Dan Kadar on Jul 26, 2009 1:13 PM EDT up reply actions

caution......I'm about to step on a soap box

I don’t really care when they hold the draft because I’ll watch it even if they move it to midnight and only do one round a day. But I do hope that they change the way that they analyze the draft, especially in the later rounds. I got so sick of hearing about Stafford vs. Sanchez or the projected starting wide outs for the Giants during the later rounds. I want to hear some kind of analysis on each and every pick, not a recap every five picks. I distinctly remember one of the Cardinals picks (6th round) wasn’t even mentioned or recapped (with the previous five) because the crew was having the 50th Stafford vs. Sanchez argument of the weekend. The only way that someone knew who the Cards took in the sixth round was by watching the scroll. That’s absurd. They’ve got three solid months to talk about how the draft effects each team and project lineups. Use these three days to focus on the guys that are actually being picked, even if it’s not a well known player from a big school.

Also I was also beaten to death by all of the guys covering the draft. John Gruden was terrible and didn’t even know what team they were talking about half the time. Warren Sapp and Deion Sanders (who was only there pimping the guys that attended his training facility) need to stay at home. Leave this event to the guys who study these prospects year round.

My biggest fear with this new “cater to the fans” approach is that they’ll try even harder to reach the ‘casual’ fans and not cater to us serious draft nerds. The casual fan doesn’t care a lick about the 215th pick in the draft but draft nerds do and that’s what we want to hear discussed when that pick is made, not how Chris Wells effects the Cardinals running game.

Ok, rant over.

Be careful....to a hammer, everything looks like a nail.

by Bezekira on Jul 24, 2009 2:13 PM EDT reply actions

Herbstreit was pretty bad too.

by BradyQuinnisBeast on Jul 24, 2009 3:01 PM EDT up reply actions

Word

You literally just put into words what I’ve been trying to put into words for the past 3 months. Well said.

If hip hop is dead, then it happened the day that Dilla died.
-Akrobatik

by Bestjagfan on Jul 24, 2009 5:51 PM EDT up reply actions

well said

Current Phinsider Feud Points: 23

by Patssuck456 on Jul 24, 2009 8:29 PM EDT up reply actions

Agreed about not talking about Sanchez vs. Stafford every 5 minutes because that is all they do on NFL Live all offseason anyway

by BradyQuinnisBeast on Jul 24, 2009 9:24 PM EDT up reply actions

Exactly

I’m worried it’ll be more about the #1 pick now then before though.

True Blue Jazz
Thoughts From The Couch
I'm on Twitter
RIP Nick Adenhart. 4/9/09

by UtesFan89 on Jul 25, 2009 12:04 AM EDT up reply actions

Great Stuff Bez

I couldn’t agree more. ESPN has made day 2 of the draft no fun to watch.

"It's almost like we play a kid's game for a king's ransom"
Sean Taylor

by MBoz126 on Jul 25, 2009 7:28 PM EDT up reply actions

Bravo. Excellent post.

by Dan Kadar on Jul 26, 2009 1:11 PM EDT up reply actions

Roger Goodell

i hate him

"The only yardstick for success our society has is being a champion. No one remembers anything else."

by BRIANMULHALL on Jul 24, 2009 10:36 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs

Geez

Draft Day Saturday used to be my second favorite Spring day drinking day. Now I am going to miss the whole 1st round because I will be in the law library.

When I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome again. True story.
-Barney Stinson

by Red Reign on Jul 25, 2009 3:18 AM EDT reply actions

Who needs to be a wealthy law-type anyway?

by Dan Kadar on Jul 26, 2009 1:11 PM EDT up reply actions

One of my fave quotes:

Shaq was asked at a press conference about being “wealthy” when he was in Miami. Shaq responded with: “I’m not wealthy; I’m rich. The guy who signs my checks is wealthy.”

Love it.

When I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome again. True story.
-Barney Stinson

by Red Reign on Jul 27, 2009 2:25 AM EDT up reply actions