Watch all three days of the 2020 NFL Draft unfold on Sky Sports, April 23-25 - starting with build-up to day one at 6pm on Thursday, April 23 with the first picks expected to be made at 1am
Sunday 19 April 2020 21:55, UK
Over three months of intense scrutiny. Endless TV and radio shows evaluating talent.
Countless mock drafts posted by sports media analysts - all trying to gauge which team values you, as a pro football player, the most.
It all climaxes with commissioner Roger Goodell reading out your name at the NFL Draft.
For the many would-be NFL stars, this is the culmination of everything they have worked for and when they get selected, it is the realisation of a dream - but this year, this year is going to be different.
There will be no fans in attendance, there will be no congratulatory hug from the commissioner and the ferry boat ride to the platform in front of the Bellagio fountains that Vegas had planned as the host venue have all gone - the coronavirus pandemic has seen to that.
Even so, this will be a night the Draft prospects remember for the rest of their lives. Record viewing figures are expected coast-to-coast in the States.
The hunger of sports fans to discover a nugget of information, the anticipation of seeing their team "on the clock" and the excitement that just maybe, this year's Draft will turn around their franchise, knows no bounds.
The NFL has turned this event into primetime viewing. There's an energy and excitement about Draft night that draws in fans, whether your fortunate enough to cover it for "work" or sat watching it on TV at home.
The 500,000 fans in attendance in Tennessee 12 months ago will not be there this Thursday night. The green rooms where journalists get instant reaction from excited Draft picks will be gone. But when the commissioner announces from his own house "the Cincinnati Bengals are on the clock", the anticipation will be just the same.
Players will sit anxiously with families and agents awaiting a call. Media will analyse every whisper, every rumour and fans will eagerly anticipate the dawn of a new era.
It's the night when dreams become reality and hope is renewed for the season to come.
Follow us @SkySportsNFL and at www.skysports.com/NFL for build-up to the three-days and Sky Sports Action will feature a host of dedicated programming including NFL Network's Path to the Draft, the latest from Pro Football Talk and much more.
