NFL Draft 2011 | LIVE NFL Draft Chat! 

The 2011 NFL draft is finally here, and will officially kick off when the Carolina Panthers are on the clock at 8:00 pm ET.

That means all those wonderful mocks everyone has been cranking out will start to be null and void, and trades and smoke screens will completely shake fan bases to their cores.

You can watch it all live on ESPN (I know I will), but if you want a more personalized and engaging experience, come join us at NFLSoup.com as we track each player selection LIVEin our 2011 NFL Draft Tracker.

We’re taking it another notch up too. Our top three writers are joining us for Day 1 of the 2011 NFL draft to chat with you about the draft and everything else NFL-related. Come on over before the draft to get things rolling. Feel free to stick around after the draft is over for discussion and thoughts about the first round of the draft.

Then come back on Friday and Saturday so we can do it all again! Click here to join the discussion in our LIVE NFL draft chat!

About the author: Taylor Smith

Taylor Smith has been with NFL Soup since its inception, and is a jack of all trades, helping with breaking news, fantasy football advice and NFL Draft coverage. Smith also heads NFL Soup's live chats and radio shows. Taylor also contributes content to our sister sites, MLB Soup, NBA Soup and NBA Water Cooler. He lives in Los Angeles, where he also is a writer for the L.A. Clippers. Follow him on Twitter @NFLSoupTaylor.