Your Complete Guide to Watching the NFL Draft in Pittsburgh
It’s officially NFL Draft day, and you know what that means. Time to sit on the couch, clutch your phone, and watch 31 other teams make moves while we wait for Brad Holmes to work his magic. Or drive us all completely insane. One of the two.
The 2026 NFL Draft kicks off in Pittsburgh on Thursday night, bringing that familiar cocktail of hope and terror that only Lions fans truly understand. Sure, the pre-draft process has been exhausting. But draft night? That’s pure electricity, even when you’ve been burned as many times as we have.
Here’s everything you need to know about catching all the drama, whether you want the full NFL Network treatment or prefer to stream it while doom-scrolling Twitter like the rest of us.
Day 1: Round 1 (Thursday, April 23)
The main event starts at 8 p.m. ET from Pittsburgh. You’ve got options across NFL Network, ESPN, and ABC, each with their own crew of talking heads ready to tell you why every pick makes perfect sense until it doesn’t.
NFL Network brings Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, Joel Klatt, Ian Rapoport, and Kurt Warner. ESPN counters with Mike Greenberg anchoring alongside Mel Kiper Jr., Booger McFarland, Louis Riddick, Laura Rutledge, and Adam Schefter. ABC rolls with Rece Davis, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Nick Saban, Molly McGrath, Field Yates, and Pete Thamel.
Streaming is available through NFL Plus, ESPN App, ABC, Hulu, and Disney+. Radio coverage runs on Westwood One, Sirius XM, and ESPN Radio.
Day 2: Rounds 2-3 (Friday, April 24)
Friday night at 7 p.m. ET is where things get interesting. This is traditionally where Holmes finds his gems, and where we either celebrate his brilliance or question everything we thought we knew about football.
The announcing crews stay mostly the same across all three networks, with Kurt Warner not listed for the NFL Network booth for Day 2. Same streaming and radio options apply.
Day 3: Rounds 4-7 (Saturday, April 25)
The marathon concludes Saturday at noon ET. ESPN switches things up with Rece Davis anchoring alongside Mel Kiper Jr., Matt Miller, Louis Riddick, Field Yates, and Peter Schrager. ABC just simulcasts ESPN’s broadcast. NFL Network sticks with Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, and Ian Rapoport.
By this point, you’re either riding high on a perfect draft or wondering how we managed to overthink everything again. But hey, that’s what makes it fun, right?
Are you planning to torture yourself with all three days or just the prime-time spectacle? Drop your viewing strategy below.
Alright I’m doing all three days, calling it now. Yeah we’ve been hurt before but this feels different and I need to see Brad work his magic in real time. Friday nights are where the real chess match happens anyway.
The day 2 gem thing kills me every time because we always talk about it and then reality hits different. I’ll be watching but I’m keeping my expectations realistic this year, just saying.
Been watching this team make draft picks since way back and let me tell you the feeling never changes. You sit there with hope in your heart and somehow they still find new ways to make you question things. That’s just Lions football, man.