What is "draftnik"

n. (context US English) One who studies and reports on the draft (player selection) for professional sports leagues.

Draftnik is a term describing those who study professional sports leagues drafts, and cover the draft in the media. The term is most often used in reference to the NFL Draft and was coined in the mid-1980s after the draft was first televised by ESPN.

The first draftniks are typically considered to be Joel Buchsbaum and Mel Kiper, Jr.

Nowadays, there are a large number of draftniks which post their own mock drafts on websites, and some have even made a living out of it.

In 2002, TheHuddleReport.com began grading the efforts of draftniks and tracking the success of their mock draft. The Huddle Report awards 2 points for correctly predicting a team's draft pick, and 1 point for each player correctly placed in the 1st round.