ESPN is going all out for its coverage of the 2024 NFL Draft, with ESPN, ESPN2 and sister network ABC covering all three days of the event live. But can football fans also watch the NFL draft on ESPN Plus? Yes, though the sports network's streaming service is getting in on the action with its own coverage of the draft that offers some different things than its main network programming.
The NFL Draft is where the 32 NFL teams add to their roster by selecting eligible players from college football (and occasionally international programs) across seven rounds. The first round of the draft takes place on Thursday, April 25, where many big-name players like Caleb Williams, Marvin Harrison Jr. and Dallas Turner are expected to be taken. Rounds two and three then air on Friday, April 26, and rounds four through seven on Saturday, April 27; and NFL diehards know these rounds are where hidden gems are found.
ESPN Plus is not going to be airing live coverage of the entire NFL Draft, but it will have its own special broadcast for the first round, and recaps of the draft for its subscribers. For more information on how to watch the NFL Draft on ESPN Plus and the streamer's planned offerings for the draft, continue reading below.
How to watch the NFL Draft on ESPN Plus
To watch the NFL Draft on ESPN Plus, you must be a subscriber to the streaming service. The good news is that there are multiple options for those interested with different price ranges.
The first is signing up for ESPN Plus as a standalone service. This is going to cost $10.99 per month, but there is also a year-long subscription option which runs for $109.99. Committing to the service for a year saves nearly $22 for the year compared to the monthly plan.
The second option to sign up for ESPN Plus is to bundle it with Disney Plus and Hulu through the Disney Bundle. For $14.99 per month, you get access to all three streaming services and their content with ads; to remove ads it will cost you $24.99 per month. If this option interests you but you are already a subscriber to one of the individual streaming services, there are options to switch your plan. If you are just a Hulu subscriber, you can add just ESPN Plus to your account for an additional $10.99 per month.
The final option is to sign up for Hulu with Live TV, which automatically gets you ESPN Plus in addition to the services live TV options starting at $76.99 per month.
NFL Draft on ESPN Plus programming
Starting off with their night one plans, ESPN Plus is going to live stream The Pat McAfee Show Draft Spectacular starting at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT on April 25. McAfee is a popular ESPN personality, and he is live in Detroit to cover the draft, featuring personalities and analysts to not just break down all the picks in the first round but to also get the fan perspective on the NFL Draft experience. If you are not an ESPN Plus subscriber, you can watch McAfee’s Draft Spectacular on YouTube and TikTok.
In addition, ESPN Plus is going to have nightly recaps of each day of the NFL Draft in the event that you missed the proceedings and want to get the highlights. Plus, at the conclusion of the draft on April 27, ESPN lead draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. will give each team a post-draft grade and explanation, while other analysts will share their steals, surprises and more, all of which will be exclusive to ESPN Plus.
