NFL draft 2026 day three: Jermod McCoy to Raiders, Jets trade up for Cade Klubnik

“I woke up this morning hoping the Jets were going to pick me,” Klubnik told reporters after the pick.

Mississippi State tight end Seydou Traore, originally from London, went to the Miami Dolphins at No 180. Photograph: John Locher/AP

The Philadelphia Eagles used the 178th overall pick on North Dakota State quarterback Cole Payton, a former FCS national champion who’ll slot in on the depth chart behind Jalen Hurts, Tanner McKee and veteran Andy Dalton.

While just six quarterbacks were drafted through five rounds, a more popular position was tight end. Seventeen were taken in rounds one to five, more than the 16 total drafted in 2025.

Mississippi State tight end Seydou Traore, originally from London, went to the Miami Dolphins at No 180, the penultimate pick of the fifth round. Though not announced as part of the prospect “green room” Traore appeared on stage in Pittsburgh and was celebrated by commissioner Roger Goodell, an unusual moment for day three of the draft.

The Cleveland Browns kicked off the sixth round by selecting Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green with the first pick. Green will join Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson and Dillon Gabriel on a crowded Cleveland depth chart.

The sixth round saw the first punter and first kicker taken. Michigan State punter Ryan Eckley went to the Baltimore Ravens at No 211, and for the final pick of the sixth round, the Green Bay Packers selected Florida kicker Trey Smack.

Three teams with established starters picked up quarterbacks in the seventh round: Rutgers’ Athan Kaliakmanis to the Washington Commanders (223), Texas Tech’s Behren Morton to the New England Patriots (234) and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier to the Kansas City Chiefs (249).

Nussmeier was the third-highest rated quarterback by Scouts Inc. but was the 10th and final QB taken in the draft. He joins newly acquired Justin Fields and holdover Chris Oladokun as backup options in Kansas City as Patrick Mahomes recovers from ACL and LCL surgery.

The seventh-to-final pick of the day was noteworthy because the player selected has never played football before. The Philadelphia Eagles took Nigerian defensive line prospect Uar Bernard at No 251.

A 6ft 4in, 306lb athlete who turned heads at the scouting combine, Bernard is part of the NFL’s International Player Pathway program, which also produced current Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata, originally a rugby player from Australia.

Red Murdock, a linebacker from Buffalo, became the highly anticipated “Mr Irrelevant” selection when the Denver Broncos chose him with the 257th and final pick in the draft. In 42 games across three-plus college seasons, Murdock had 364 tackles (39.5 for loss), nine sacks and an NCAA record 17 forced fumbles – one more than the previous record-holder and fellow Buffalo alum, Khalil Mack.