Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema will be a part of NFL Network’s extensive coverage of the 2011 NFL Draft from Radio City Music Hall. We recently caught up with him to discuss draft prospects J.J. Watt, Gabe Carimi and life in Wisconsin after the Packers’ Super Bowl win

The Panthers will have one of the toughest schedules in 2011 (based on 2010′s winning percentages), a fact that was not lost on the majority of Carolina fans.

NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock spent 90 minutes Wednesday on a conference call talking with reporters about the 2011 NFL Draft. Those 90 minutes proved to be a gold mine of pre-draft knowledge, with Mayock sharing his thoughts on many of the prospects and what NFL teams are thinking.

You may not have seen the memo, but it is indeed mandatory for any draft conversation with members of the media to begin with a question about Cam Newton’s worthiness as the top overall pick in next Thursday’s draft. Such was the case Tuesday afternoon on a conferencd call with NFL analysts Boomer Esiason, Howie Long and Cris Collinsworth.

North Carolina WR Greg Little poses for a portrait at the NFL Network Studio on April 19th.

Eight is Enough. As bad as that ‘70s TV show was, it can’t be any worse than having to wait any longer for the start of the 2011 NFL Draft. And eight just happens to be the number of days until the draft begins.

While it may not be the end-all, be-all, strength of schedule is a major reason why some good teams might go 8-8. Conversely, 5-win teams of last year can ride a creampuff schedule to doubling their win total.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Gerald McCoy poses for a portrait at the NFL Network studios on April 18th.

Finally. The NFL schedule release on Tuesday has a lot of anxious folks around the league wondering what kind of journey their team will have to make to have a shot come mid January. And I’m not just talking about fans. General managers, coaching staffs and players all take great interest on who they play, and when. Perhaps the most important game, at least from a league standpoint, is the Kickoff Game, which — since being instituted in 2002 — always comes on the Thursday night prior to Week 1′s Sunday games. Of course, it’s important that the NFL brandishes a sexy matchup, like last year’s Vikings-Saints tilt from the Big Easy. But perhaps more significant is how the clubs [...]

Nine Tonight. I’m not sure what Bob Seger was singing about on that tune, but as of this evening, there are just nine more until we get to April 28, day one of the NFL Draft. This svelte number traditionally has meant a lot to many people, from nine lives to Roger Maris (a No. 9), and his 61 home runs.

With the 2011 NFL schedule release almost upon us, it should be interesting to see which teams will have the toughest road to Super Bowl XLVI. But while checking the home/away schedule and the non-division opponents gives us insight as to how difficult our favorite team’s path will be, sometimes the most overlooked facet of the NFL schedule is the obvious one: divisional games.

Ten. It’s more than Bo Derek in 1979. It’s even more than Pearl Jam’s best album. Right now, 10 is how many days we have left on the Path to Primetime. You might be wondering what that number means in the lexicon of the NFL draft.

Ravens LB Terrell Suggs poses for a portrait in the NFL Network Studio on April 15 in Culver City, CA. Click on the photo to see who else has visited NFL Network.

It’s April in the NFL, which means it’s pretty quiet, except for the fact that one of the coolest weekends of they year, draft weekend, is just 11 days away.