Photo by David Becker/Getty Images Everything you need to know to watch the 2024 NFL Draft. Here’s all the information you’ll need to watch the 2024 NFL Draft, otherwise known as the 89th Annual National Football League Player Selection Meeting. Remember that we’ll have in-depth coverage of all the Chicago Bears picks here at WCG, as well as on our 2nd City Gridiron podcast channel and video channel. Speaking of our video channel, we’ll be streaming the entirety of night one of the Draft to provide a Chicago Bears focus on a live Bears Banter featuring Bill Zimmerman and a bunch of guests. Also, Jeff Berckes will be covering night one of the Draft for us, so follow him on Twitter at @gridironborn. Where is the NFL Draft? Detroit, Michigan in the downtown area and Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza. When is the NFL Draft? 7:00 pm CT, Thursday, April 27 (Round 1) 6:00 pm CT, Friday, April 28 (Rounds 2-3) 11:00 am CT, Saturday, April 29 (Rounds 4-7) According to the league, last year’s first round took three hours and 40 minutes, night two took three hours and 59 minutes, and Saturday’s festivities took six hours and 51 minutes. How to watch? The 2024 NFL Draft will be televised nationally by the NFL Network, ABC, ESPN, and ESPN Deportes and can also be heard nationwide on Westwood One Radio, SiriusXM NFL Radio, and ESPN Radio. And don’t forget Bill Zimmerman will be streaming the entire first round on our 2nd City Gridiron video channel for a Bears-centric take on the night. Live NFL Network coverage of the Draft is available across devices (smartphone, PC, tablet, and connected TVs) through the NFL app or NFL.com/watch for subscribers of participating NFL Network providers and on NFL+. How many picks? There will be seven rounds and 257 selections, including 34 compensatory choices awarded to 14 teams. How much time between picks? Round 1: Ten minutes per selection* Round 2: Seven minutes per selection Rounds 3 - 6 (including comp picks): Five minutes per selection Round 7 (including comp picks): Four minutes per selection *If the Bears go on the clock promptly at 7:00 pm CT tonight, they will pick at approximately 8:30 pm if they stick at the ninth overall selection. What is the current first-round order? Chicago Bears (from Carolina) Washington Commanders New England Patriots Arizona Cardinals Los Angeles Chargers New York Giants Tennessee Titans Atlanta Falcons Chicago Bears New York Jets Minnesota Vikings Denver Broncos Las Vegas Raiders New Orleans Saints Indianapolis Colts Seattle Seahawks Jacksonville Jaguars Cincinnati Bengals Los Angeles Rams Pittsburgh Steelers Miami Dolphins Philadelphia Eagles Minnesota Vikings (from Cleveland through Houston) Dallas Cowboys Green Bay Packers Tampa Bay Buccaneers Arizona Cardinals (from Houston) Buffalo Bills Detroit Lions Baltimore Ravens San Francisco 49ers Kansas City Chiefs The full order for all seven rounds can be found here. Where are the Bears currently slated to pick? Round 1: No. 1 overall (via Carolina)Round 1: No. 9Round 3: No. 75Round 4: No. 122 (via Philadelphia) Once the Draft starts, we’ll be tracking every selection and trade made by GM Ryan Poles here: Chicago Bears NFL Draft 2024 Results: Pick and Trade Tracker Odds According to our partners at DraftKings Sportsbook, Caleb Williams is -20,000 to be selected by the Bears, which means you’d have to bet $20,000 to win $100. Texas defensive tackle Byron Murphy II is the favorite to be the pick at nine overall at +145, with Washington wideout Rome Odunze next at +350. The over/under for quarterbacks selected in the first round is 4.5, and the over/under for wideouts picked in the first is 6.5. They also have a draft matchup odds section, and Malik Nabers is favored to be drafted before Rome Odunze. Which prospects will be in Detroit at the Draft? Terrion Arnold, CB, Alabama Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State JC Latham, OL, Alabama Laiatu Latu, DE, UCLA Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo Malik Nabers, WR, LSU Rome Odunze, WR, Washington Darius Robinson, DL, Missouri Brian Thomas Jr., WR, LSU Dallas Turner, LB, Alabama Caleb Williams, QB, USC

Photo by Michael Zagaris/Getty Images Greg Gabriel shares his experience from draft rooms during his scouting career. With the 2024 NFL Draft beginning tomorrow night, I thought it might be interesting to explain how different Draft Rooms I have been in were set up. Just like no two Draft Boards are alike, the same can be said about Draft Rooms and who is in them. The first time I was in a Draft Room was in 1982 with the Buffalo Bills. Back then, it was much different than it is today. In the two-week period leading up to the Draft, the scouts were in town and set up the Board. Once they completed setting up the Board, the scouts who were out of town went home. The Draft was on Tuesdays at that time and was 12 rounds. It began at 8:00 AM Eastern time, and all 12 rounds were completed that day. It usually didn’t end until about 2:00 AM the next morning. The only people who were in the room those years were the Head Coach, the Director of Player Personnel, the Scouting Director, and the few scouts who lived locally. The only opinions that mattered or who discussed who to take were the Head Coach (Chuck Knox) and the Director of Player Personnel (Norm Pollom). The General Manager of the Bills at that time was not involved in the Draft, and his job description was more like that of a Club President today. I was with the Bills for three Drafts, with the same people involved and the Draft Room scenario being the same. In 1984, I went to work for the New York Giants, and the 1985 Draft was the first Draft I was involved in with that Club. The Giants did it totally differently than the Bills. All the scouts came to the Giants facility two weeks before the Draft, and like with the Bills, we spent those two weeks setting the Board. Because the Draft was 12 rounds at the time, we didn’t finish setting the Board until about two days before the Draft, but there was always a discussion between the decision-makers in the week leading up to the Draft to strategize. With the Draft being 12 rounds, we had 12 columns of 28 players (there were only 28 teams at the time) set up from highest grade to lowest. When there were players with the same grade, we stacked them in order of preference. The Draft Room at Giants Stadium was much different than it was in Buffalo. It was huge, and during the Draft, the entire scouting staff, the General Manager, the Personnel Director, the Head Coach, the Coordinators, and, of course, the Owner were all present. As we got close to each pick, the discussion would begin as to who we would select. Any person who had written a report on one of the players discussed was allowed to take part in the discussion. At that time, we went strictly by the Board, and we would talk about the five highest-rated players on the Board regardless of position. At the end of the discussion, there was always one player the room agreed upon, and that was the player we selected. This procedure was the same for every round of the Draft. The entire 17 years I was with the Giants, we did it the exact same way. There were many things about the way the Giants ran a Draft that I wasn’t comfortable with. When Jerry Angelo and I came to Chicago in June of 2001, we had both spent time in New York, and we both agreed that wasn’t going to be the way we ran a Draft here in Chicago. The main thing we didn’t like was that there were too many players on the Board. We wanted to cut that number to strictly players we had an interest in. We called those prospects our “Hot List.” When we got to the Draft, the only names that were on the main Draft Board were just Hot List players, and that number was about half of the 255 players drafted each year. Some years, it wasn’t even that. Players with character issues, medical issues, or who weren’t fit for our scheme were not on the Board. The thinking was, “Why have names on a Board that there was no way we would even think about selecting?” The other main difference we had was we didn’t rank the players in seven rows but rather stacked them by position. Offensive players were on the left side of the Board, and defensive players were on the right. Each position was stacked by grade and separated by round designations. Players that we felt were worthy of being selected in the first two rounds were “A” players. Players with third and fourth-round grades were in the “B” group, and the “C” group were players with grades for rounds five through seven. If a player had a “D” designation, he could not be drafted but only signed as a UDFA after the Draft. When selecting players, it was always hoped and usually worked out that we were able to get an A-level player in the third round and a B-level player in the fifth and sometimes the sixth round. That happens because every team's Board is stacked differently. In the final week leading up to the Draft, we would discuss strategy. We would prioritize the players we wanted for each round and have a “game plan” set up for Draft Weekend. When we got to the Draft, we would always follow the plan that had been set up. Of course, there would be discussion before each pick, but we tried never to deviate from the original plan. As for who was in the Draft Room in Chicago, it was General Manager Jerry Angelo, me, the scouts, Head Coach Lovie Smith, team President Ted Phillips, and both Michael and Pat McCaskey. The Head Trainer and the team Doctor were also there in case there were any medical questions that needed to be answered. When it came time to discuss players, the only people who talked were the scouts, Jerry, Lovie, and myself. Neither Ted nor the McCaskey’s seldom said a word. In between picks, Jerry and I would always huddle in his office and discuss the next pick before going back into the room and discussing things with the scouts. I worked as a consultant in Philly in 2012 and 2013. Their Draft Room procedure was very different from how I had previously done it. In Philly, the scouts didn’t come in until a week before the Draft, and for the most part, the first four rounds of the Board were already set. When the meeting began, it was much more about Day 3 than anything else, as the decision-makers had already set the first part of the Board to their liking, The Draft Room in Philly is very small and can’t accommodate more than about ten people. That said, the only people in the room were the decision-makers, the Head Coach, the Owner, and a few of his guests. The scouting staff was in an adjacent room and were brought in to answer questions. After the decision was made, we came into the room as the pick was announced. Needless to say, I didn’t like that situation as I had never been in a Draft Room where the scouting staff didn’t have a say in who got picked. Philly generally has good Drafts, so that way of doing things works for them. Now, many clubs have cameras in their Draft Rooms. When watching the Draft, be aware of how many people are in the room, who is standing, and who has a desk and chair. That can tell you how many people are involved when draft decisions are being made.

Adalina chef Soo Ahn poses with Top Chef judge Tom Colicchio. | David Moir/Bravo Adalina’s Soo Ahn will compete and El Ideas’ Phillip Foss will guest chef Warning: Small spoilers for Top Chef: Wisconsin, episode 6. As the latest season of Top Chef motors on to its sixth episode — premiering tonight (Wednesday, April 24) on Bravo — there are two developments that Chicagoans should know about. Soo Ahn, the chef at Gold Coast Italian restaurant Adalina, gets the call to the big show after fighting his way through the Top Chef: Last Chance Kitchen, the web-only series that offers competitors a chance to appear on the original show. Adalina is hosting a watch party when the show debuts tonight. Ahn made a name for himself at Band of Bohemia, where the Ravenswood restaurant was, at the time, the only Michelin-star brewpub in the world. The restaurant closed after his departure. Since then, he’s brought electricity to the Gold Coast with Adalina with a unique Italian American menu. The other Chicago item shouldn’t be that big of a surprise as chef Phillip Foss of El Ideas, the funky experimental tasting menu restaurant in Douglass Park, is appearing on tonight’s show. Foss, a Milwaukee native, says he’ll be a guest chef on the episode which will feature Chaos Cooking, a type of style — a phrase coined in 2022 by Eater’s Jaya Saxena — as a new type of cooking that’s an “aggressive, weird, troll-y fusion that’s also thoughtful, being incredibly well received, and actually good.” Foss says he’d never heard of the term until he was approached to appear on the show. But he feels it’s a philosophy he’s embraced through the years at EL Ideas where the menu can include chicken liver Twix and a Chicago-style lobster dog. He also mentions how chaos cooking involves an element of shock. His restaurant has served foie gras and black truffle milk from a baby bottle, for example. But the biggest example might be a “cocaine” course which involves a line of coconut and lime powder served on a mirror with a razor blade and straw. “Though it is easily the most cost-effective item we’ve ever offered as a course, it provides exponential dividends in shock value for our guests,” Foss writes. Still, Foss stresses that chefs need to crawl before they walk — they can’t immediately jump into the “cesspool of chaos.” They need to learn the fundamentals first. Ahn joins Chicago Athletic Association chef Kaleena Bliss as the two locals left. Former MFK and Bambola chef Alisha Elenz has been eliminated. Watch Foss and Ahn on Top Chef: Wisconsin, debuting at 8 p.m. tonight.

Working Draft is a highlight when it comes to Madison’s drinking scene. | Ashok Selvam/Eater Chicago This town offers more to drink than just beer — but the beer is still good Ounces upon pints of ink have been spilled documenting Wisconsin’s drinking culture, some of it valuable and some of it… less so. But between the punchlines and statistics is a region where drinking is best taken seriously and enjoyed thoroughly. With the premiere of the 21st season of Bravo TV’s Top Chef, Madison is getting some much-deserved hype as a destination for food and drink travel. I’m thrilled about this; as a decades-long resident and food and beer writer since 2007, I’m a big proponent of experiencing everything Madison offers. And believe me, the beer is good, but there’s more than suds in our glasses From bourbon to tiki, elaborate modernist cocktails to single-origin espresso, and all varieties of beer, mixed drinks, and yes — even non-alcoholic twists — Madison’s drinks culture compliments the restaurant scene and stands steady all on its own. For a rundown on where to eat in Madison, check out our restaurant guide.