What time does NFL Draft 2026 start today? Live TV coverage, schedule for Thursday's Round 1

Yahoo Sports3h ago18 min readOriginal source →

TL;DR

The NFL Draft 2026 starts today in Pittsburgh, with teams having eight minutes to make their first-round selections. This year's draft is expected to be unpredictable, making it a must-watch event for fans.

Key points

NFL Draft 2026 starts today in Pittsburgh
Teams have eight minutes for first-round picks
Draft expected to be unpredictable
Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza is projected first pick
Event designed to keep viewers engaged

Mentioned in this story

Pittsburgh

NFL Draft 2026Fernando MendozaRaiders

What time does NFL Draft 2026 start today? Live TV coverage, schedule for Thursday's Round 1 originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The NFL Draft kicks off Thursday in Pittsburgh with a new wrinkle for 2026, as the picks should come faster than ever.

Teams will now have just eight minutes on the clock to make their first-round selections, down from 10 minutes in recent years and 15 before that. The latest TV-friendly adjustment to the annual event will keep the pace high and help discourage wandering away or changing channels between picks.

Also helping in that regard: This first round feels as unpredictable as any in recent memory. After the Raiders' expected selection of Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza at No. 1, there doesn't seem to be much consensus about where other prospects will land.

That's a formula for reaches, slides and trades, so the 2026 draft should be a must-watch for football fans.

Here's all you need to know about when and where to tune in for the festivities.

What time does NFL Draft 2026 start today?

Date: Thursday, April 23
Time: 8 p.m. ET

Round 1 of the 2026 NFL Draft is set to begin shortly after 8 p.m. ET on Thursday. This year's draft will take place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Where to watch the NFL Draft

**TV channel:**ABC | ESPN | NFL Network
Live stream:fubo

The NFL Draft will be available to watch on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network.

Thursday's ESPN broadcast will feature Mike Greenberg as the host alongside analysts Mel Kiper Jr., Booger McFarland and Louis Riddick.

Q&A

What time does the NFL Draft 2026 start today?

The NFL Draft 2026 kicks off today in Pittsburgh, but the exact start time is not specified in the provided information.

How long do teams have to make their picks in the NFL Draft 2026?

Teams will have eight minutes to make their first-round selections in the NFL Draft 2026.

Where is the NFL Draft 2026 being held?

The NFL Draft 2026 is being held in Pittsburgh.

Why is the NFL Draft 2026 considered unpredictable?

The NFL Draft 2026 is seen as unpredictable due to the lack of consensus on where many prospects will land, leading to potential reaches, slides, and trades.


Round	Date	Time (ET)	TV/Live stream
1	Thursday, April 23	8 p.m.	ABC, ESPN, NFL Network, fubo
2-3	Friday, April 24	7 p.m.	ABC, ESPN, NFL Network, fubo
4-7	Saturday, April 25	Noon	ABC, ESPN, NFL Network, fubo


Round	Pick	Overall	Team
1	1	1	Las Vegas Raiders
1	2	2	New York Jets
1	3	3	Arizona Cardinals
1	4	4	Tennessee Titans
1	5	5	New York Giants
1	6	6	Cleveland Browns
1	7	7	Washington Commanders
1	8	8	New Orleans Saints
1	9	9	Kansas City Chiefs
1	10	10	New York Giants (from CIN)
1	11	11	Miami Dolphins
1	12	12	Dallas Cowboys
1	13	13	Los Angeles Rams (from ATL)
1	14	14	Baltimore Ravens
1	15	15	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
1	16	16	New York Jets (from IND)
1	17	17	Detroit Lions
1	18	18	Minnesota Vikings
1	19	19	Carolina Panthers
1	20	20	Dallas Cowboys (from GB)
1	21	21	Pittsburgh Steelers
1	22	22	Los Angeles Chargers
1	23	23	Philadelphia Eagles
1	24	24	Cleveland Browns (from JAX)
1	25	25	Chicago Bears
1	26	26	Buffalo Bills
1	27	27	San Francisco 49ers
1	28	28	Houston Texans
1	29	29	Kansas City Chiefs (from LAR)
1	30	30	Miami Dolphins (from DEN)
1	31	31	New England Patriots
1	32	32	Seattle Seahawks


Round	Pick	Overall	Team
2	1	33	New York Jets
2	2	34	Arizona Cardinals
2	3	35	Tennessee Titans
2	4	36	Las Vegas Raiders
2	5	37	New York Giants
2	6	38	Houston Texans (from WASH)
2	7	39	Cleveland Browns
2	8	40	Kansas City Chiefs
2	9	41	Cincinnati Bengals
2	10	42	New Orleans Saints
2	11	43	Miami Dolphins
2	12	44	New York Jets (from DAL)
2	13	45	Baltimore Ravens
2	14	46	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2	15	47	Indianapolis Colts
2	16	48	Atlanta Falcons
2	17	49	Minnesota Vikings
2	18	50	Detroit Lions
2	19	51	Carolina Panthers
2	20	52	Green Bay Packers
2	21	53	Pittsburgh Steelers
2	22	54	Philadelphia Eagles
2	23	55	Los Angeles Chargers
2	24	56	Jacksonville Jaguars
2	25	57	Chicago Bears
2	26	58	San Francisco 49ers
2	27	59	Houston Texans
2	28	60	Chicago Bears (from BUF)
2	29	61	Los Angeles Rams
2	30	62	Denver Broncos
2	31	63	New England Patriots
2	32	64	Seattle Seahawks


Round	Pick	Overall	Team
3	1	65	Arizona Cardinals
3	2	66	Tennessee Titans
3	3	67	Las Vegas Raiders
3	4	68	Philadelphia Eagles (from NYJ)
3	5	69	Houston Texans (from NYG)
3	6	70	Cleveland Browns
3	7	71	Washington Commanders
3	8	72	Cincinnati Bengals
3	9	73	New Orleans Saints
3	10	74	Kansas City Chiefs
3	11	75	Miami Dolphins
3	12	76	Pittsburgh Steelers (from DAL)
3	13	77	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
3	14	78	Indianapolis Colts
3	15	79	Atlanta Falcons
3	16	80	Baltimore Ravens
3	17	81	Jacksonville Jaguars (from DET)
3	18	82	Minnesota Vikings
3	19	83	Carolina Panthers
3	20	84	Green Bay Packers
3	21	85	Pittsburgh Steelers
3	22	86	Los Angeles Chargers
3	23	87	Miami Dolphins (from PHL)
3	24	88	Jacksonville Jaguars
3	25	89	Chicago Bears
3	26	90	Miami Dolphins (from HOU)
3	27	91	Buffalo Bills
3	28	92	Dallas Cowboys (from SF)
3	29	93	Los Angeles Rams
3	30	94	Miami Dolphins (from DEN)
3	31	95	New England Patriots
3	32	96	Seattle Seahawks
3	33	97	Minnesota Vikings (compensatory)
3	34	98	Philadelphia Eagles (compensatory)
3	35	99	Pittsburgh Steelers (compensatory)
3	36	100	Jacksonville Jaguars (special compensatory)


Round	Pick	Overall	Team
4	1	101	Tennessee Titans
4	2	102	Las Vegas Raiders
4	3	103	New York Jets
4	4	104	Arizona Cardinals
4	5	105	New York Giants
4	6	106	Houston Texans (from WAS)
4	7	107	Cleveland Browns
4	8	108	Denver Broncos (from NO)
4	9	109	Kansas City Chiefs
4	10	110	Cincinnati Bengals
4	11	111	Denver Broncos (from MIA)
4	12	112	Dallas Cowboys
4	13	113	Indianapolis Colts
4	14	114	Philadelphia Eagles (from ATL)
4	15	115	Baltimore Ravens
4	16	116	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
4	17	117	Las Vegas Raiders (from MIN)
4	18	118	Detroit Lions
4	19	119	Carolina Panthers
4	20	120	Green Bay Packers
4	21	121	Pittsburgh Steelers
4	22	122	Atlanta Falcons (from PHL)
4	23	123	Los Angeles Chargers
4	24	124	Jacksonville Jaguars
4	25	125	New England Patriots (from CHI)
4	26	126	Buffalo Bills
4	27	127	San Francisco 49ers
4	28	128	Detroit Lions (from HOU)
4	29	129	Chicago Bears (from LAR)
4	30	130	Miami Dolphins (from DEN)
4	31	131	New England Patriots
4	32	132	New Orleans Saints (from SEA)
4	33	133	San Francisco 49ers (compensatory)
4	34	134	Las Vegas Raiders (compensatory)
4	35	135	Pittsburgh Steelers (compensatory)
4	36	136	New Orleans Saints (compensatory)
4	37	137	Philadelphia Eagles (compensatory)
4	38	138	San Francisco 49ers (compensatory)
4	39	139	San Francisco 49ers (compensatory)
4	40	140	New York Jets (compensatory)

What time does NFL Draft 2026 start today? Live TV coverage, schedule for Thursday's Round 1

TL;DR

Key points

What time does NFL Draft 2026 start today?

Where to watch the NFL Draft

Q&A

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