Do You Care About the NFL Draft?

Thursday night at 8 p.m., millions of NFL fans will plant themselves in front of a television and watch the 2012 NFL Draft—a place where hopes are born and speculation is king.

For most teams, the draft is a time where owners address the weak points in a roster and try to fill them with impressive college athletes. Draft picks have traditionally been a surprise, but as more NFL insiders broadcast their reports on Twitter, some argue that the lure and anticipation of the draft has been diminished.

Of the seven rounds in the draft, I personally only pay attention to the first one (Thursday starting at 8 p.m. on ESPN). It’s not because I’m disinterested, I just don’t know any of the players after the first 32 are selected.

Sure, everyone knows the Indianapolis Colts are selecting Andrew Luck and the Washington Redskins are picking Robert Griffin III, but even 30 picks later, even an avid NFL fan like myself has trouble knowing who’s who. It was this process of thinking that led me to wonder “Is the NFL Draft nerdy?”

I attended the 2011 NFL Draft in New York City and even though it was the final day of the draft (the 7th round) there were still fans emphatically applauding the picks of their beloved football teams. Looking back, I can’t help but draw a comparison to the things I deemed “nerdy” as a kid like Magic: The Gathering (I admit I played a little too). These guys were tracking the most obscure statistics, names and backgrounds. Their giddiness was almost contagious and as I discussed this year’s draft with some close friends, I realized that I believe there’s a layer of nerdy-ness that accompanies all sports.

Ever listened to fantasy football lovers discuss their imaginary rosters? Ever heard baseball fans analyze the ERA, WHIP and OBP for their favorite baseball teams? It’s really no different from anything culturally labeled “nerdy.”

For the sake of full-disclosure, I’m a full-blown fantasy football fanatic and big-time baseball follower.

Regardless if you agree with me about the nerd factor of the NFL Draft, I’m interested in knowing if most people around Edgewater and Davidsonville even care about it. Last year, the draft attracted approximately 7 million viewers during the first round, prime time slot, but it was down from the previous year’s 8.3 million total.

In case you do plan to watch the draft, and in Edgewater are two great places to watch the "drama." 

Will you be watching the first round of the NFL Draft Thursday night?