First-round coverage of the 2014 NFL Draft on NFL Network and ESPN drew a combined total viewership of 32 million viewers, making it the most-viewed Round 1 ever, according to The Nielsen Company (based on at least one minute of viewing). The 32 million viewers is up 28 percent over last year (25.0 million).
Schein: Round 1 winners and losers
The combined NFLN/ESPN coverage also averaged a record 12.4 million viewers, ranking as the most-watched first round, topping 2010 (8.3 million viewers). The draft was the most-watched program on cable and the second most-watched program on television Thursday night ("The Big Bang Theory," CBS).
NFL Network's first-round coverage drew a record average of 2.4 million viewers -- a 60 percent increase over last year's previous record (1.5 million viewers).
The NFL's digital media platforms -- including NFL.com and NFL Mobile from Verizon -- set records with their first-round coverage of the 2014 NFL Draft. Highlights include:
» NFL digital media platforms had over 14 million visits, a 54 percent increase over 2013
» NFL Mobile from Verizon had a year-over-year increase in visits of 168 percent
» NFL digital media properties had nine million visitors on Thursday, 44 percent higher than for the 2013 NFL Draft
» NFL.com users averaged 29 minutes per visit on desktop, up 16 percent over 2013
In addition, more than 11 million people saw more than seven million total tweets about the draft last night, up 347 percent from 2013 (according to Nielsen Social Guide).