we'll go inside the nfl draft. >>> finally here tonight, if we could open a window in the studio, you could hear them. the streets outside this building in mid town manhattan are filled with people. they are loud, being held back by police barricades, but there is in trouble here. most of them are wearing nfl team merchandise. in fact, we all know someone out there. they are just little more passionate about their favorite nfl team than the rest of us are. this is the nfl draft, and tonight nbc's willie geist has a look at how this came to be such a monumental event. >> reporter: at the core, the nfl draft is a simple exercise. >> the st. louis rams select sam bradford. >> reporter: 30 teams gather to submit choices across a crop of college prospects, but what fun is that? there are no tackles or touchdowns, but the draft become a football spectacle second only to the super bowl.