Diehard football fans will wake from their two-month slumber this weekend to follow coverage of the National Football League’s NFL Draft, a multi-day event where teams hope to pick among the best college prospects to give their franchise a competitive edge heading into the 2023-2024 football season.
The draft is a crucial part of the NFL’s player acquisition process, as it provides teams with an opportunity to add talented young players to their rosters. The order in which teams select players is determined by their performance in the previous season, with the teams that performed the worst getting the first picks.
The NFL Draft is a highly watched and anticipated event, with fans of each team eagerly waiting to see who their team will select. The draft is broadcast on television and online, and experts analyze each pick and predict how the players will perform in the NFL.
The NFL Draft is particularly important for those who play fantasy football, as participants begin to weigh which players they want to “draft” as part of their fantasy teams.
This year’s NFL Draft will be aired simultaneously on three television networks — ABC, ESPN and NFL Network — with some coverage available on the free streaming NFL Channel on select platforms.
In the past, football fans needed to subscribe to cable or satellite to stay on top of the NFL Draft. Thankfully, that’s no longer the case, and there are a number of cheap options to catch every moment of the NFL Draft ahead of the 2023-2024 season.
It can be tough to sift through the number of streaming options to catch this year’s NFL Draft, but The Desk is making it easier for you by highlighting some of the best, low-cost ways to watch every minute of the highly-anticipated football event. As always, our top choice is the most affordable. Here we go…
- See the schedule for each round of the 2023 NFL Draft
- Find out which channels offer the 2023 NFL Draft on Sling TV
- Find out which channels offer the 2023 NFL Draft on Vidgo
- Find out which channels offer the 2023 NFL Draft on Fubo
- See other ways to watch the 2023 NFL Draft
Stream the 2023 NFL Draft on Sling TV
Cost: $40 a month (or just $20 with this deal)
Sling Orange channels: ESPN, ESPN 3, ABC (some areas)
Sling Blue channels: NFL Network
Cloud DVR: 50 hours for free, 200 hours for extra fee
Get a special discount: Click or tap here
With cable and satellite prices going way up over the last few years, it might be difficult to believe there could be a way to watch the 2023 NFL Draft and other sports-related programming without breaking the bank. And yet, Dish Network’s Sling TV exists to do just that — and it happens to be the CHEAPEST way to follow all the action from the 2023 NFL Draft.
Sling TV offers two base subscription package, each priced at just $40 a month. The Sling Orange package has ESPN (and local ABC stations in some areas), while Sling Blue offers NFL Network. Both will offer complete coverage of the 2023 NFL Draft, although the channels will have different commentators fronting the event.
Don’t want to have to choose between ESPN and NFL Network? Sign up for the Sling Orange & Blue package for $55 a month and get both channels, and watch every second of the 2023 NFL Draft when it starts on Thursday, April 27.
But you are reading The Desk, so of course you know there’s a special deal: Sign up for Sling Orange or Sling Blue at this link, and get your first month of service for just $20. That’s right — just $20 scores you a ticket to each day of the NFL Draft. Even better: Sign up at this link, and get the Sling Orange & Sling Blue package for just $27.50 — that gets you access to both ESPN and NFL Network.
Sling TV works on most popular streaming TV platforms, including Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Android TV (Google TV). Sling TV also has native apps for most newer-model LG, Samsung and Vizio smart TV sets. Don’t have a TV? Stream the same Sling TV channels on your phone, tablet or the Sling TV website.
Stream the 2023 NFL Draft on Vidgo
Cost: $70 a month
NFL Draft Channels: ABC, ESPN, NFL Network
Cloud DVR: Available on some plans
See more features: Click or tap here
Vidgo is on the pricier end, but that’s to be expected of a streaming service that offers a lot of live sports programming. Still, as far as streaming services go, Vidgo still beats the cable and satellite competition — and it offers a lot of sports channels for the price.
When it comes to the 2023 NFL Draft, Vidgo is the CHEAPEST place to access ABC, ESPN and NFL Network coverage from a single plan. While Sling TV may offer ABC stations in around a half-dozen regional markets, Vidgo offers ABC stations and affiliates coast-to-coast (in some areas where a local ABC station isn’t available, Vidgo provides a national feed of ABC, which will offer live coverage of the 2023 NFL Draft).
Football fans will probably want to stick with Vidgo long after the draft is done, since its $70 a month “Plus” package offers ongoing access to NHL Network, NFL Network, MLB Network, Big 10 Network, Pac-12 Network, ESPN, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2 and live sports aired on ABC and Fox.
Vidgo’s Plus package costs $70 a month and is available by clicking or tapping here. Football fans can also access NFL RedZone through the Vidgo Premium package, which costs $85 a month and is available by clicking or tapping here.
Stream the 2023 NFL Draft on Fubo
Cost: $75 a month (plus regional sports fee)
NFL Draft Channels: ABC, ESPN, NFL Network
Cloud DVR: Available on most plans
Get A Free Trial: Click or tap here
Fubo is the ultimate streaming service for live sports, though it’s a bit pricier than the others. Still, it offers powerful features like the ability to watch multiple live channels from a single screen (on Apple TV only), favorite certain channels for quick reference later and record live sports for playback at a later time.
Fubo also offers the most-comprehensive lineup of live sports channels, including ABC, ESPN and NFL Network, which will carry live coverage of the 2023 NFL Draft. Fubo also offers NFL RedZone (in some packages, or available as an add-on), MLB Network, NHL Network, NBA TV and regional sports channels in some areas.
Fubo offers a seven-day free trial when new streamers sign up by clicking or tapping this link.
Other ways to watch the 2023 NFL Draft
Here are a few other ways to catch the 2023 NFL Draft when it starts on Thursday, April 27:
- YouTube TV: The service costs $73 a month and offers live access to ABC, ESPN and NFL Network, along with dozens of other channels. YouTube TV also has an unlimited cloud DVR that stores recordings for 9 months, doesn’t charge regional sports or broadcast TV fees, and offers a free trial when new customers sign up by clicking or tapping here.
- Free, with an antenna: If you live in an area with a local ABC station, there’s a good chance you can watch the 2023 NFL Draft for free. Simply hook an over-the-air antenna into the designated jack on the back of your TV set, perform a channel scan, and watch live coverage of the 2023 NFL Draft on your local ABC station. Don’t have an over-the-air antenna? We recommend antennas designed by Mohu, click or tap here for more information.
- Free, on the NFL Channel: The free, ad-supported NFL Channel will offer live “look-ins” on the 2023 NFL Draft on Thursday and Friday, along with all draft picks from Rounds 4 through 7 on Saturday. While look-in coverage won’t be as comprehensive as the ABC, ESPN or NFL Network broadcasts, it’s still a decent option for the casual football fan who simply wants to catch the highlights of the 2023 NFL Draft. To stream NFL Channel, download the free Xumo Play, Pluto TV or Tubi apps for smart TVs, tablets and phones.
2023 NFL Draft TV Schedule
Round 1 of the 2023 NFL Draft is scheduled for Thursday, April 27 starting at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (5 p.m. Pacific Time), with broadcasts available on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network.
Rounds 2 and 3 of the 2023 NFL Draft is scheduled for Friday, April 28 starting at 7 p.m. Eastern Time (4 p.m. Pacific Time), with broadcasts available on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network.
Rounds 4 through 7 of the 2023 NFL Draft is scheduled for Saturday, April 29 at 12 p.m. Eastern Time (9 a.m. Pacific Time), with broadcasts on ESPN and NFL Network.
The free, ad-supported streaming NFL Channel will offer live “look-ins” of Rounds 1 through 3 on Thursday, April 27 and Friday, April 28, with live coverage of every draft pick from Rounds 4 through 7 on Friday, April 28 and Saturday, April 29. The NFL Channel is available on Xumo Play, Pluto TV and Tubi.
