With the first round in primetime Thursday, both ESPN and the NFL Network plan red-carpet shows for celebs entering New York's Radio City Music Hall for an event whose spectators are known for booing loudly and wearing off-the-rack NFL jerseys. But, says ESPN producer Jay Rothman, "there's a strong effort by the league to have more glam!" Says producer Eric Weinberger of NFLN, which is doubling its draft coverage to 38 hours: "It's up to the NFL, NFLN and ESPN to make it more of an awards show, a huge entertainment atmosphere."

Like when prospects, he says, are picked: "We'll make a conscious effort to concentrate on that moment when they're picked, and crying and hugging their families."

Off-site, ESPN plans to have cameras in the homes of at least 25 potential draftees while NFLN will have cameras in at least six team "war rooms." Despite the lack of action, each network says there's plenty to go around. "We've worked closely for months," says NFLN's Weinberger. "But when the draft starts, I don't think either pays much attention to the other." Says ESPN's Rothman: "We hope more people are watching us than them. But we play nice in the sandbox."