Good news, NFL Draft fans in Canada. You’ll have more live TV options than ever before this year.
The Disney corporation has decided to air draft coverage that’s less in-depth and more widely accessible to the average fan – on ABC affiliates, which appear on every Canadian cable or satellite provider’s most basic package.
Think of ABC’s new offering on the first two nights of the draft as sort of a cross between Good Morning America and College Game Day. GMA ’s Robin Roberts will host ABC’s “differentiated” coverage, along with CGD ’s Rece Davis, Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso, Desmond Howard and David Pollack.
Canadian Jesse Palmer and Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes, the reigning NFL MVP, will appear on both ABC’s and ESPN’s coverage.
Round 1 of the draft goes Thursday night in Nashville, with Rounds 2-3 on Friday night, and Rounds 4-7 on Saturday afternoon.
In Canada, TSN3 will air ESPN’s live, pre-draft specials on Thursday from 3-8 p.m. EDT and Friday from 3-7 p.m. EDT.
TSN3 will simulcast ABC’s live coverage of Round 1 on Thursday and Rounds 2-3 on Friday night, with TSN4 picking up ESPN’s both nights.
Although no TSN channel won’t air any of ABC’s or ESPN’s Saturday coverage of Rounds 4-7, you can watch the former on whichever ABC affiliate channel(s) in your basic cable or satellite feed.
As well, seven hours of ESPN’s Rounds 4-7 coverage can be streamed Saturday in Canada on TSN.ca as well as via the TSN app.
In fact, all TSN coverage can be streamed through TSN.ca and the TSN app with a TSN Direct subscription, or TSN subscription via a cable or satellite provider.
Of course, if you pay for the NFL Network specialty sports channel you can watch live coverage of all seven rounds, all three days.
As for radio, four TSN sports stations in Canada will pick up ESPN Radio’s draft coverage: BNN Bloomberg 1410 in Vancouver (previously TSN 1410), TSN 1260 in Edmonton, TSN 1200 in Ottawa and TSN 1050 in Toronto.
Copyright Postmedia Network Inc., 2019
