• Loading stock data...
Thursday, July 3, 2025

NFL Draft Grades: Belichick, Saban, and Detroit Get High Marks

  • This year’s draft is on pace to shatter attendance records.
  • On TV, the former coaches impressed many with their analysis Thursday night.
Detroit Free Press

The NFL, the Lions, and Detroit officials all knew they had a likely hit on their hands by putting the league’s draft in Motor City’s downtown. But even the most bullish of previous projections are quickly being rendered obsolete. 

The first day of the three-day showcase event drew a crowd of 275,000, according to league commissioner Roger Goodell, smashing the prior single-day attendance record of 200,000 for the event set by Nashville in 2019. At Detroit’s current pace, the city could also top Nashville’s three-day total of 600,000, which remains the draft’s high-water mark, and attract roughly 750,000 fans by weekend’s end.

That NFL attendance total for Thursday night denotes only the number of fans within the official event footprint, which reached capacity about 90 minutes before the formal start of the draft’s first round. Detroit police, however, pointed to as many as 400,000 people having descended on downtown. 

Big crowds are expected Friday and Saturday for the latter two days of the draft, as well, further emphasizing the rapid transformation of Detroit as a top-tier market for NFL fan affinity. After decades of on-field futility, the Lions’ march last season to the NFC championship game helped reenergize the city and lead to a full sellout of the team’s home schedule for the first time in Ford Field history. 

“This community is such a football town,” Goodell said on ESPN’s live draft coverage. “We told the people here to do this Detroit-style, showcase the things that make you special, and these fans are a big part of it.”

Legendary Analysis

The options for watching Thursday night’s madness play out on TV were plentiful: ABC, ESPN, ESPN+, and NFL Network all rolled out their A-list football analysts and personalities, but two draft coverage newbies captured the most attention. Former Alabama coach Nick Saban fronted ABC’s more family-focused telecast, while former Patriots boss Bill Belichick got out of his comfort zone with The Pat McAfee Show draft special.

In the eyes of Front Office Sports media expert Michael McCarthy, both coaching legends lived up to the hype. “Saban seemed comfortable in the center chair on what amounted to his debut on College GameDay this season,” McCarthy says. “Why not? He brought unique knowledge, either playing against or recruiting many of the top prospects. As I previously predicted, Belichick was a surprise. He was sharp, incisive. He told war stories and passive-aggressively settled scores with the Pats.”

Belichick’s draft duties are done, but it looks like he could have a stint on the ManningCast during ESPN’s Monday Night Football this fall, as well as more work with Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions. Saban will return to ABC’s coverage of the second and third rounds of the draft Friday night as another 69 players—many of whom he coached or faced in college—come off the board. 

On Saturday, the convergence of rounds four through seven will play out as the NFL seeks a viewership boost from the average audience of six million viewers that consumed last year’s draft, a figure that was up 12% over 2022.

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

exclusive

PGA Tour Slashes FedEx Cup Winner Pay From $25M to $10M

The FedExCup is reworking how it distributes its bonus money.

Commanders’ $3.8B Stadium Deal in Jeopardy? Mayor Sounds the Alarm

Political tensions rise about delays in stadium funding approval.

As NBA Free Agency Quiets, Focus Shifts to Potential Extensions

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander signed a four-year, $285 million extension.

Paramount Settles Trump Suit Ahead of NFL Season, Skydance Merger

The deal likely allows the much larger Skydance merger deal to proceed.

Featured Today

The Battle Over Wimbledon’s Ambitious Expansion Plan

A classic NIMBY standoff on one of the most hallowed grounds in sports.
Seattle Rough & Tumble
June 28, 2025

Women’s Sports Bars Are on the Rise. Survival Isn’t Guaranteed

Some women’s sports bars are cashing in. Others are clawing for funding.
June 27, 2025

Shitposters Have Taken the Reins of Pro Sports’ Official Voices

Meet the social media pros turning sports teams into internet trolls.
Jun 17, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Sam Reinhart (13) hoists the Stanley Cup after winning game six of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers at Amerant Bank Arena
June 26, 2025

Stanley Cup’s International Summer Tour: Rules, Repairs, and Raucousness

No pro trophy tour compares to the NHL’s three-month global victory lap.
Leo Messi

TNT, Club World Cup Ride Messi to Surprisingly Solid Debut Ratings

TNT Sports carries about a third of matches in the U.S.
June 23, 2025

NBA Finals Game 7 Is Most-Watched Since 2019, but Series Drops 9%

Game 7 drew 16.35 million viewers, the most-watched NBA game since 2019.
June 24, 2025

Fever vs. Aces Draws 5th-Largest TV Audience of 2025 WNBA Season

ESPN will carry seven more Indiana Fever games this year.
Sponsored

Hottest Matchups Following NFL Schedule Release

The NFL released the 2025 regular-season schedule, and anticipation is already building in the ticket marketplace with four months to go.
June 19, 2025

Pacers Force Game 7, Could Spark Big Ratings Boost for NBA Finals

Game 7 could boost NBA Finals ratings after a slow start this year.
June 17, 2025

Stanley Cup Final Delivers Drama but Struggles for Eyeballs in U.S.

U.S. viewership fell while Canadian audiences for the event rose slightly.
June 17, 2025

Streaming Tops Linear for First Time, Sports Still Key to TV’s Resilience

Streaming hits another critical milestone in an accelerating media transition.
June 17, 2025

Zaslav Takes Pay Cut, TNT Sports Future Unclear in WBD Shake-Up

The TNT Sports parent company retools its executive pay after shareholder pushback.