How to watch, listen to, and stream the 2021 NFL draft
The preamble and speculation is nearly at an end — the 2021 NFL draft gets underway at 8:00 p.m. EST on Thursday night, and here’s how you can watch and stream all the festivities.
Of course, you’ll want to keep it on Touchdown Wire through the entire draft, as Doug Farrar and Mark Schofield will be providing live analysis of the entire first round on Thursday night, comprehensive wrap-ups of all the happenings on Days 2 and 3, and the final grades when it’s all done on Saturday evening. In addition, check out what Luke Easterling, Laurie Fitzpatrick, and our friends over at Draft Wire are doing.
NFL Network
(Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
For the 15th year, NFL Network provides live on-location coverage of the NFL Draft. NFL Network’s coverage of the 2021 NFL Draft from Cleveland kicks off Thursday, April 29 at 8:00 PM ET with first round coverage provided by 2021 Sports Emmy nominee host Rich Eisen, draft expert Daniel Jeremiah, analyst Charles Davis and Stanford head coach David Shaw, along with analyst Kurt Warner, FOX Sports’ lead college football analyst Joel Klatt, and NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport. Additionally, Melissa Stark interviews the draftees on-stage following their selection.
NFL Network’s live coverage of the 2021 NFL Draft continues with Rounds 2 and 3 on Friday, April 30 at 7:00 PM ET, with NFL Network’s Peter Schrager and Chris Rose joining Eisen, Jeremiah, Davis, Klatt, Rapoport and Stark.
Live coverage of the 2021 NFL Draft concludes with Rounds 4-7 on Saturday, May 1 at 12 Noon ET with Eisen, Jeremiah, Davis, Schrager and Rapoport.
Provided below is NFL Network’s complete broadcast team in Cleveland:
Thursday, April 29 at 8:00 PM ET (Round 1)
Main Set: Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, Stanford Head Coach David Shaw
Outside Set: Kurt Warner, Joel Klatt
Insider: Ian Rapoport
Stage: Melissa Stark
Friday, April 30 at 7:00 PM ET (Rounds 2-3)
Main Set: Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, Joel Klatt
Outside Set: Chris Rose, Peter Schrager
Insider: Ian Rapoport
Stage: Melissa Stark
Saturday, May 1 at 12 Noon ET (Rounds 4-7)
Main Set: Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, Peter Schrager
Insider: Ian Rapoport
Live audio coverage will be provided by SiriusXM (Rounds 1-7), Westwood One (Round 1) and ESPN Radio (Rounds 1-7).
NFL Network reporters will be stationed at the following NFL team locations on Thursday, April 29 for first round coverage:
Judy Battista & James Palmer – Jacksonville Jaguars
Stacey Dales – Philadelphia Eagles
Mike Giardi – New England Patriots
Kim Jones – New York Jets
Aditi Kinkhabwala – Pittsburgh Steelers
Omar Ruiz – Miami Dolphins
Michael Silver – Denver Broncos
Jane Slater – Dallas Cowboys
Steve Wyche – Atlanta Falcons
Mike Yam – San Francisco 49ers
ESPN
(Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports)
The Walt Disney Company will kick off its presentation of the 2021 NFL Draft on Thursday, April 29, at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on ESPN, ABC, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio and the ESPN App. Coverage will include 1,500 creative elements, 450 player highlight packages and 35 player vignettes. ESPN and ABC will document the three-day event with 50 cameras and more than 50 microphones following live action in Cleveland, more than 40 additional cameras at the homes of Draft prospects and another 32 cameras offering looks into each NFL Draft room.
On ESPN, Mike Greenberg will host prime-time telecasts in Cleveland on April 29 and 30 with senior NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr., NFL analysts Louis Riddick and Booger McFarland, Senior NFL Insiders Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter and NFL host Suzy Kolber, who will interview draftees. This will be ESPN’s 42nd NFL Draft telecast.
On ABC, Rece Davis will host prime-time broadcasts in Cleveland on April 29 and 30 with college football analysts Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard and senior NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay. From a nearby set, Maria Taylor will host with college football analysts Jesse Palmer and David Pollack. Taylor will also interview the family members of NFL draftees. Leveraging valuable insights from the eleven-time Sports Emmy Award-winning College GameDay Built by The Home Depot crew, ABC will offer player-focused coverage, giving insight to storylines on and off the field.
Following distinctive prime-time presentations, the ABC and ESPN teams will combine to present Day 3 of the NFL Draft with Davis, Kiper, McShay, Riddick, Mortensen and Schefter offering commentary.
The ABC and ESPN teams will also preview the NFL Draft on editions of College GameDay and NFL Draft Countdown. Pre-event coverage begins April 29-30 at 5 p.m. ET and Saturday at 11 a.m. ET, all on ESPN. Davis and Taylor will host College GameDay April 29-30 and Laura Rutledge will host on May 1. Rutledge will also report from the red carpet for College GameDay prior to Round 1. Greenberg will host NFL Draft Countdown.
On ESPN Deportes, Monday Night Football voices Eduardo Varela and Pablo Viruega will deliver exclusive Spanish-language coverage from ESPN’s headquarters in Bristol, Conn. Reporter Rebeca Landa and Sebastian Martinez-Christensen will provide reports.
ESPN’s coverage of the 2021 NFL Draft will also air internationally, reaching more than 60 million households in Spanish-speaking Latin America, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands, the Caribbean, the Netherlands and Africa.
On ESPN Radio, 6 p.m. ET SportsCenter anchors Elle Duncan and Kevin Negandhi will lead NFL Draft broadcasts April 29-30 from Bristol, Conn., alongside NFL Front Office Insider Mike Tannenbaum, ESPN Radio’s Bart Scott and reporter Ian Fitzsimmons. Duncan and Kevin Negandhi will also kick off next Thursday and Friday morning co-hosting ESPN’s Get Up from 8-10 a.m. ET. ESPN Radio’s coverage will continue on May 1 with host Jason Fitz, NFL Draft analyst and Senior Bowl Executive Director Jim Nagy, Tannenbaum and Fitzsimmons. Saturday’s NFL Draft on ESPN Radio coverage will also be simulcast on many of ESPN’s digital and social platforms, including Twitter and Facebook.
In addition to airing live on ESPN, ABC, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio and the ESPN App, the 2021 NFL Draft will be televised on NFL Network presented by Verizon and streamed live through NFL digital properties. SportsNation’s NFL Draft Digital Show will also stream live Rounds 1-3. Further, ESPN will surround the three-day event with coverage across all platforms and count down to Round 1 with a 26-hour Draft Marathon across ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNEWS. Highlights:
SportsNation NFL Draft Digital Show Streaming Live across the ESPN App, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and – in an ESPN first – TikTok
This year, ESPN’s live digital show for the NFL Draft will be anchored by SportsNation on Thursday and Friday and accessible across the ESPN App, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and – for the first time for an ESPN studio production – TikTok. As fans have come to expect from the SportsNation brand, the show will focus on reactions and engagement from fans both on site in Cleveland and across social media.
Ashley Brewer, Treavor Scales, and Mike Golic, Jr. will host from the main set in Bristol, Conn., and will be joined by a lineup of ESPN’s digital commentators including Mina Kimes and Harry Lyles as well as instant analysis from Matthew Berry, Jason Fitz and Field Yates. Together, they will deliver pick-by-pick coverage through the fans’ perspective with off-stage moments that will complement the viewing experience to the main telecast. The show will also feature first round reaction from First Take commentators Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman and player vignettes from SportsCenter anchor Kevin Negandhi. Additionally, it will create real-time video highlights and moments for the ESPN App, YouTube, and across social platforms.
A multicast show with ESPN Radio will be live streamed for Saturday’s coverage featuring Golic, Jr., Scales, and Yates.
ESPN NFL Reporters to Cover All 32 Teams
The following NFL reporters will appear on a variety of shows sharing the latest news from around the league: Jeff Darlington (covering the Buccaneers, Chiefs, Dolphins, Jaguars, Packers), Dan Graziano (Bengals, Chargers, Giants, Lions, 49ers), Kimberley A. Martin (Bills, Browns, Panthers, Vikings, Washington), Sal Paolantonio (Colts, Eagles, Jets, Ravens, Steelers), Mike Reiss (Patriots), Dianna Russini (Bears, Falcons, Raiders, Saints, Titans), Lindsey Thiry (Rams) and Ed Werder (Broncos, Cardinals, Cowboys, Seahawks, Texans).
NFL Live and Afternoon SportsCenter Segments to Originate from Cleveland
Laura Rutledge will host NFL Live from Cleveland April 28-30 with NFL analysts Mina Kimes, Dan Orlovsky, Marcus Spears and Ryan Clark. The daily NFL news and information show will air at its regular time on April 28 (4-5 p.m. ET) and expand to two hours April 29-30 (3-5 p.m. ET), leading into College GameDay. The noon ET edition of SportsCenter will also expand for Draft coverage April 29-30, airing live until 3 p.m. ET. Rutledge will host segments from Cleveland during the three-hour programs.
More Pre- and Post-Draft Coverage on SportsCenter
SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt will air at 11:30 p.m. ET on ESPN following prime-time presentations of the Draft with more reaction, analysis and interviews. Leading up to the Draft, editions of SportsCenter will air related content including a series narrated by anchor Kevin Negandhi that explores the Draft needs of the Jets, Dolphins, Patriots, 49ers and more, as well as a virtual reality series with analyst Dan Orlovsky breaking down the top five quarterbacks. SportsCenter also will air Draft-related excerpts from other ESPN shows including Hey Rookie, Detail: Tebow, QB21 with Kirk Herbstreit and a series of vignettes on Draft prospects.
ESPN, ABC Commentators Make Guest Appearances on NFL Network
Today Louis Riddick will join NFL Total Access and David Pollack will join NFL Now, continuing a Draft tradition of cross-network collaboration. ESPN2 will also simulcast NFL Network’s Good Morning Football April 29-30 from 7-10 a.m. ET. Additionally, the Draft-a-Thon will be featured across live Draft coverage on ABC, ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio and NFL Network April 29-May 1.
Streaming
(Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
Per the Sporting News, there will be NFL Draft TV live streams on YouTube TV, Hulu Plus Live TV, Sling TV, AT&T TV Now and fuboTV. All carry at least one of the channels broadcasting the 2021 NFL Draft.
Those with connected TV devices (such as Xbox, PlayStation, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV and Roku) can stream the NFL draft with the NFL, ABC or ESPN apps. Similar options are available for those with mobile devices and tablets, which also includes the NFL Network App.
Live streams of the NFL Draft will be available on computers and laptops, with authentication from participating TV providers, at NFL.com/Watch, WatchESPN and ABC.go.com.
