By Dave Zirin in April 2008 It's no secret that the NFL draft is catnip cut with Vicodin for the pro football fan. It kills the pain of the off-season and becomes the focal point for parties, pow-wows and all matter of percolating prattle. Though the draft has been around since 1936, it's become must-see TV only in the last twenty-five years. (In 1936, number-one pick Jay Berwanger didn't even suit up for the league.) Thanks to ESPN, which began broadcasting the draft in 1980, it has become a major scene of fandemonium. This pigskin meat market is mindless fun, and in our all-too-serious sports world, fun is often in short supply.