The third round of the 2016 NFL Draft is in the books, and with it the second day as well. Compared to the craziness that was the first round of the draft with all of its trades and controversy and the second round's run of talent at the beginning, the third round was a somewhat muted affair.
NFL Draft 2016 results: Connor Cook slips to Day 3 as other QBs go in 3rd round
Cook is still on the board while Cody Kessler and Jacoby Brissett went ahead of him.
Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Earlier on Friday, the second round saw players like quarterback Christian Hackenberg land with the New York Jets and the linebacker Myles Jack land with the Jacksonville Jaguars. They were both huge selections, but that really did encompass the biggest names to fall far in the draft, especially when you add Jaylon Smith, who went just before Jack, in the list as well.
The third round did see plenty of movement on the trade front, but they were mostly minor jumps as teams snatched the players they wanted. It was a pretty average third round at that point -- the San Francisco 49ers grabbed a cornerback with a torn ACL in Will Redmond, the Cleveland Browns finally started to use all the picks they have been acquiring via trades and the New England Patriots had a relatively quiet second day after not having a first round pick.
Then again, the Patriots did take quarterback Jacoby Brissett near the end of the third round. That is to say, Brissett went before guys like Dak Prescott and Connor Cook. Then the Browns took Cody Kessler, also before those guys.
It will be interesting to see what happens with Kessler. The Browns have an immediate need at quarterback but passed on taking one of the top players when they traded out of the second pick. Kessler figures to be a guy that needs to sit for awhile. Brissett is in a similar situation in that he needs to sit and learn, but he has Tom Brady to work behind for at least a couple years, which could be an ideal situation for him.
Cleveland had three picks in the third round and used them to land defensive end Carl Nassib of Penn State, offensive tackle Shon Coleman of Auburn and Kessler. Coleman is notable not just for his strong play on the field, but for the fact that he beat cancer earlier in his career.
Potentially the biggest name going in the third round was Ohio State wide receiver Braxton Miller, who went to the Houston Texans at No. 85 overall. Miller was lost in the Ohio State quarterback shuffle and made the transition to wide receiver this past season. It's a difficult transition to make, especially so close to transitioning to the NFL. But the Texans are taking a chance on him, which is significant given they took wide receiver Will Fuller in the first round of the draft.
The biggest names still on the board are obviously Cook and Prescott, along with Cardale Jones and Andrew Billings. They’ll be hoping they are early picks on Day 3, which will comprise rounds four through seven.
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