We are a scant 72 hours away from the start of the 2016 NFL Draft in Chicago, ladies and gentlemen! We intend to, once again, be your first and foremost source of information about the Minnesota Vikings this draft weekend, and we're going to give you everything you need to follow the action in Chicago over the course of the three days of the Draft.
First of all, we are happy to report that our own Eric Thompson will be live at Winter Park for all three days of the draft, providing coverage and reaction straight from Vikings headquarters. We will have an Open Thread for each day of the draft (separate from the regular Open Thread) with his Twitter feed embedded into it so that you can see the reaction as it comes.
In addition, we will have profiles of all the new draftees as quickly as we can after the picks come in, as well as up-to-the-minute information on any deals that "Trader Rick" and the Vikings should make over the course of Draft Weekend.
So, let's go through some of the other parts of this year's NFL Draft.
What time does the 2016 NFL Draft start each day?
Round 1 - Thursday, 28 April, 7:00 PM Central time
Rounds 2, 3 - Friday, 29 April, 6:00 PM Central time
Rounds 4, 5, 6, 7 - Saturday, 30 April, 11:00 AM Central time
What television channels will the NFL Draft be on?
You can see television coverage of the NFL Draft on either ESPN or the NFL Network. Check your channel guide and/or local listings for what channels those are in your area.
What if I'm traveling and/or would just like to listen to the NFL Draft on the radio?
Personally, I'm not sure which local radio affiliates anywhere are going to be airing the 2016 NFL Draft. Check your local affiliates to find out (though I'm sure if they were airing it, they'd be advertising it and you'd probably know by now). I do know that if you have satellite radio, you can listen to coverage of the Draft on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Channel 88.
I'm not going to be near a television or a radio. Will the 2016 NFL Draft be streamed online anywhere?
It certainly will be! You can watch it on your computer, tablet, or phone through either WatchESPN or NFL.com. If you're overseas, you can tune into the NFL Network through the NFL Game Pass app and watch it there.
How long do teams get to make their selections?
In Round 1 of the draft, teams get up to ten minutes to make their selection. In Round 2, that time is reduced to seven minutes per selection, and in the remaining rounds the time is reduced to five minutes. It is important to note that if two teams agree to a trade involving the selection currently on the clock, the clock does not reset.
How many selections to the Minnesota Vikings currently have, and where are they in the Draft?
As things stand right now, the Vikings have eight draft selections to play with over the course of Draft weekend. They are as follows:
Round | Pick | Overall | How Acquired |
1 | 23 | 23 | Own selection |
2 | 23 | 54 | Own selection |
3 | 23 | 86 | Own selection |
4 | 23 | 121 | Own selection |
5 | 23 | 160 | Own selection |
6 | 5 | 180 | Acquired from San Francisco 49ers (Gerald Hodges trade) |
7 | 19 | 240 | Acquired from Buffalo Bills (Matt Cassel trade) |
7 | 23 | 244 | Own selection |
Obviously, these numbers can. . .and likely will. . .change over the course of the weekend. Rick Spielman always seems to come out of a draft with more selections than he comes in with, so you'll have to be following closely with all the action on draft weekend.
We hope that you'll be getting your information this Draft weekend from us here at The Daily Norseman. We've still got plenty of good stuff for you between now and the start of the Draft on Thursday as well.