NFL Draft 2016 live blog: Day 3

SANTA CLARA — This is the live blog for Day 3 of the NFL Draft. I’ll update this with information and analysis as the picks roll in.

9:10 The Oakland Raiders take Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook, who will be a serviceable backup. Not a bad pick.

9:19 I think the Niners made the right choice taking Will Redmond in Round 3. He’s a much better prospect than the corner who was taken after him — KeiVarae Russell. The Niners still can get a quality base-down inside linebacker in Round 4.

9:21 The Chargers take Ohio State inside linebacker Joshua Perry. Bad pick for the Chargers, good pick for the Niners. A better inside linebacker will drop. Perry is a stiff.

9:43 The Giants take Clemson ILB B.J. Goodson with Pick 109. Nick Kwiatkoski and Scooby Wright are still on the board.

9:55 The Bears take Kwiatkoski with Pick 113. Scooby Wright may not fall to the Niners at Pick 33.

9:57 By the way, Kwiatkoski will be a monster under defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. Great pick.

10:12 The Texans take San Jose State running back Tyler Ervin with Paul Perkins, Kenneth Dixon and Daniel Lasco still available. Strange.

10:43 The Packers take Stanford inside linebacker Blake Martinez with Pick 131. Niners up in two picks and Scooby Wright is available.

10:44 The Ravens take Michigan defensive tackle Willie Henry, and the Niners are on the clock.

10:48 The Niners draft LSU cornerback Rashard Robinson, as we all expected.

11:06 With Pick 142, the Niners take Appalachian State defensive end Ronald Blair. I like the pick. He doesn’t fill a need, but he’s a talented player. Potentially a better run-defender than DeForest Buckner.

11:14 With Pick 145, the 49ers take Georgia offensive tackle John Theus. Fills a big need at right tackle. Probably will be the team’s swing tackle.

12:05 The Kansas City Chiefs take Stanford quarterback Kevin Hogan with Pick 162. Great pick. The best quarterback available is now TCU’s Trevone Boykin.

12:33 With Pick 174, the 49ers select Ole Miss offensive tackle Fahn Cooper. The Niners now have drafted two tackles, two corners, zero linebackers and zero running backs. Meanwhile, the Seahawks have drafted two running backs. That’s how you build a run-first offense.

1:59 With Pick 174, the 49ers select Louisiana Tech quarterback Jeff Driskel. I love this pick.  I consider Driskel one of the five-best quarterbacks in the draft along with Jared Goff, Carson Wentz, Paxton Lynch and Kevin Hogan.

2:11 With Pick 211, the 49ers select Florida running back Kelvin Taylor, son of Fred Taylor. There’s the change-of-pace back for Carlos Hyde.

2:18 With Pick 213, the 49ers select Michigan State wide receiver Aaron Burbidge, whom I consider a better player than his college quarterback, Connor Cook. Good pick.

3:27 With Pick 249, the 49ers take yet another cornerback: Prince Charles Iworah. Great name. Horrible pick. I thought Baalke said before the draft he liked his corners. What changed?

3:31 The Niners took three corners and zero inside linebakers, of course.

3:35 And of course, the third corner probably won’t make the team.

This article has 168 Comments

  1. I’m expecting Booker to be the fourth round comp pick. He fits what Baalke generally does with that pick.

  2. I can’t wait for the Duck Dynasty beard to lose its popularity.

  3. The autumn wind is a Raider
    And so is Conner Cook
    Forget the rumors and draft this boy
    For Conner is no schnook

  4. How many of us have come back a better player after an injury?

    With analytics being so prevalent today how there been studies done on player’s effectiveness before and after surgery?

    With so many good and healthy players out there I don’t like taking these red-shirt players, who may or may not come back as good as they were before their surgery.

    Yes I know that Frank Gore and others have come back. But there are many others who have not.

    I just don’t like taking a chance on these red-shirt players so high in the draft. This team has too many needs to fill. To me these redshirt players are a wasted pick.

    Chances are a player is going to be hurt sometime in their career. Why take one who has already been hurt and is likely to be hurt again?

    1. You’re right Bill. Frank Gore was a once in a lifetime gift. Same with our run first mantra. Sure run first is a good idea when you have a hall of fame running back. But how’s it work out when you don’t. (Please don’t anyone try to sell me that Carlos Hyde is on his way to the Hall of Fame. He’s probably on his way to the hospital). The old saying is better lucky than good. Baalke keeps thinking he’s good and that’s the problem.

      1. Yah, and I suppose Todd Gurley was a figment of our imagination.

        It’s 2016 guys, ACL tears are no longer considered much of a risk, as long as there isn’t a lot of cartilage damage. How many, torn ACL’s have been drafted in round 1 recently? Quite a few. That tells you everything.

    2. Because, by and large, guys do fully recover from ACL injuries today, due to advancements in medicine. Far fewer setbacks on ACL recovery today, than only 6 or 7 years ago, and in a lot of cases, these players end up with stronger knees due to all the rehab conditioning adding strength, and blood flow, to the muscles and joint.

      Your point about having to wait and losing a years worth of service is absolutely a factor to consider. However, more often than not, ACL injuries are not causing players to fail in the long run. Of course, it always depends on the severity of the injury, but most of the time, when these guys fail, it’s usually due to factors outside of their ACL tears.

      In the case of Redmond, he’s expected to be full go by camp, so there is no redshirt issue with him, unless he suffers the rare setback ….. KNOCK ON WOOD!

  5. Names I’d love to see added to the roster today:

    Not in any order:

    Dak Prescott
    Matt Johnson
    Pharoh Cooper
    Roger Lewis
    Jared Norris
    Tyrone Holmes
    Jimmy Bean
    Brandon Shell

    1. Just another indication of the depth at the position. Surprised to see him still on the board….

    1. For those that do watch that video, it sounded to me at the one point where he said “these young guys FINALLY got to see some action”, it was a hint at one of the things him and Harbagh didn’t see eye to eye about. Harbaugh hated playing young guys. Unless he didn’t have a choice. I don’t blame him sometimes, because when your stacked you don’t need younger guys. But you still have to develop what you have, and as was proven, 2 years ago I’m Harbaghs final season, when all the injuries finally caught up to us, we didn’t have developed guys to step in. These guys need some time on the field, not just practice and ota’s and training camp.

  6. DIxon’s the back I would take as a comp pick if you think you need another if Davis doesn’t have it. Outside of that, add speed. At CB, at WR, at OLB, etc. Cooper, Mills, Mcallister, Nicolas

  7. There goes the MLB dream for some. Still, Wright and Matakevich later would be a good idea.

  8. Wow, Billings has fallen off the edge of the earth. What did he do, kick a sick puppy?

  9. Billings fall a big puzzle. Rumors he has knee issue. Billings says the knee is fine.

  10. According to multiple sources and NFL announcers, no character or injury concerns. Huge drop for whatever reason

  11. There you go Reggie, now you’re COOKing with fire!

    Well, I’m not a Raider fan, but it sure makes it easy makes it easy to follow Cook early in his career. Smart move by McKenzie. He knows the Raiders are on the verge of making the postseason, and he also knows QB’s get hurt, so you better have a guy that’s able to come off the bench and win early in his career.

    All in all, I’m happy for Cook. It’s a pretty good situation he’s in now, and he’ll get a chance to start somewhere, sooner than later.

    I got thing left to say: JUST WIN BABY!

    1. Well, I hope he will be happy warming the bench. Carr is the starter, and Cook better be happy with left overs.

      1. Yah, he’s a backup for ow, but odds are, Carr will get hurt at some point, and Connor will have a chance to prove himself on a potential playoff contender. Imagine Carr going down late in the season, with the Raiders in playoff contention, and here comes Mr. Big Game QB, Connor Cook, who thrives when the lights are brightest, KNOCK ON WOOD Carr doesn’t get seriously hurt, maybe a few broken ribs.

        It’s exactly the way his idol, TB12, and others, got their opportunity. He’ll get an opportunity, and when he does, it’ll be up to him to seize it by the horns.

        Regardless of his backup status day one, he’ll get his opportunity at some point, GAURANTEED!

        1. 49, your loyalty to Cook is commendable, but remember, He dropped like a rock, from being a late first round prediction to lasting until the 4th round.
          Looks like Grant was right, and you were wrong in your assessment. In the tough AFC West, Carr may get roughed up, but do not count on Cook starting because Carr just got a lot of protection in Free Agency and the draft.

  12. There goes Kwiatkoski. I wonder if Baalke is happier with Bowman and Hodges than we think. Reports from OTAs say Bowman’s moving well.

      1. Still plenty of time left in the draft. You can’t deny Higbee and Cooper are improvement.

  13. only 5 ILB chosen so far…..1 in the 2nd, 1 in the 3rd, 3 in the 4th…..

    confirms lack of ILB talent in this draft

    Best Available Inside Linebacker

    Tyler Matakevich ILB Temple
    Blake Martinez ILB Stanford
    Josh Forrest ILB Kentucky
    Scooby Wright III ILB Arizona
    Kentrell Brothers ILB Missouri
    Jared Norris ILB Utah
    Steve Longa ILB Rutgers
    Terrance Smith ILB Florida St
    Beniquez Brown ILB Miss St
    Steven Daniels ILB BC
    Dominique Alexander ILB Oklahoma
    Will Ratelle ILB North Dakota
    Gionni Paul ILB Utah
    Raphael Kirby ILB Miami
    C J Johnson ILB Ole Miss

  14. The Rams are doing well this round. On the video I used to watch on Dylan Thompson, Cooper always stood out. The NFC West is getting tougher for sure.

  15. At some point there will be a run on running backs. Hope its not depleted by pick 133

  16. FWIW 142+207 would fetch pick 122 (in case Baalke has a draft crush he wants to nail down)

    Baalke’s said after a few drafts he tries to trade up late picks, but didn’t get any takers.

  17. With Kwiatkoski and Ervin gone I wonder if the9ers don’t pull the trigger a little early and grab Hogan in the late 4th?

      1. Seb,
        Are there any ILB’s left worth a 4th Rd pick? Dixon from L. tech might fit here.

  18. With the starting line likely being Staley, Beadles, Kilgore, Garnett, Brown, how many of Tiller, Martin, Thomas, Devy, Pears will be job hunting in September?

    Best case scenario (though not expecting it)…
    – Thomas improves and becomes the swing tackle he was drafted to be.
    – Martin gets stronger vs the Bull Rush
    – The Tiller stays as quality depth with a nasty attitude
    – Devy and Pears are released.

    1. Martin should be backup guard. I really wanted Evan Boehm as the backup center, but am satisfied with Kilgore still.

    2. They usually have 8 OL on the 53, 10 on the team

      Starters – Staley, Beadles, Kilgore, Garnett, Brown = 5

      Back up C/G – Silberman, Martin, Tiller, Thomas = 4

      Back up T – Pears or a rookie = 1

  19. Here is my hypothesis.

    Let’s say I am or you are the only person making the draft picks for the 49ers this year.

    And the only resource I or use use is a draft magazine ranking the players. I do no scouting in person. I watch absolutely no tapes on the players. I interview no coaches. I do nothing.

    I bet by just sitting at home and using the draft magazine I could have the approxamitely the same success as by paying millions to these the employees making these picks.

    For example here are the niners picks the last five years:

    2011 10 picks. 2 starters 1 backup 4 other teams 3 out of league
    2012 7 picks 0 starters 0 backups 3 other teams 4 out of league. Every employee who was involved in this draft should have been fired by now.
    2013 11 picks 3 starters 3 backups 3 other teams 3 out of league
    2014 12 picks 5 starters 5 backups 0 other teams 3 out of league
    2015 10 picks 1 starter 9 backups 0 other teams 0 out of league

    I believe I could or most people on this board could do just as well.

  20. Cardinals got a good player in Boehm, the center. According to nfl.com, he could be an early starter.

  21. Another corner. Rashard Robinson. Could be some house cleaning in the secondary this summer.

    1. I was thinking the same thing Brodie. Brock, Acker, Reaser? I don’t think Reid is going any place. I would suspect Bethea is a more likely to be cut. It’s just my opinion but D Johnson seems like someone to stick around. What are youth initial thoughts?

    1. He’s fast but lots of character issues and they passed on a quality RB who got picked next slot officially my WTF Baalke pick for this draft

    2. High risk but very high reward. The word around LSU is that he made some bad mistakes, but is not a bad guy.

  22. nfl.com:
    NFL COMPARISON Dominique Rodgers-­Cromartie
    BOTTOM LINE He might look like he skipped “leg day” for several years, but his height, speed and man-­cover talent is undeniable. Robinson has the traits and talent to be considered one of the best press corners in this draft, but teams will have to weigh the character against the talent. Look for an electric combine which could create new buzz around the former LSU Tiger. Robinson has the raw ability to become a good NFL starter who can play on an island if asked, but I am downgrading his draft grade due to his character concerns.

  23. Supposed to be one of the best press corners in the draft but comes with character concerns….

  24. SOURCES TELL US “I’m not sure he’s a bad kid, but I know he hates school. He’s really tough — ­typical south Florida kid. You know what you get. The interviews will work themselves out for better or worse, but you keep things simple for him and let him chase one guy around the field all day. He’s really good at that.” — Former SEC defensive coach

  25. What a wasted pick by the niners. This CB hasn’t played football since 2014. He has played only 18 games(and only 8 starts) since HIGH SCHOOL! How is he going to cover elite NFL receivers? This pick is a reach. The niners don’t need reaches, they need players!

  26. “Sources Tell Us “I’m not sure he’s a bad kid, but I know he hates school. He’s really tough — ­typical south Florida kid. You know what you get. The interviews will work themselves out for better or worse, but you keep things simple for him and let him chase one guy around the field all day. He’s really good at that.” — Former SEC defensive coach

    NFL Comparison Dominique Rodgers-­Cromartie

    Bottom Line He might look like he skipped “leg day” for several years, but his height, speed and man-­cover talent is undeniable. Robinson has the traits and talent to be considered one of the best press corners in this draft, but teams will have to weigh the character against the talent. Look for an electric combine which could create new buzz around the former LSU Tiger. Robinson has the raw ability to become a good NFL starter who can play on an island if asked, but I am downgrading his draft grade due to his character concerns. “

  27. Assume they decided that a revised Tank and bigger Eli were at least as good as the draftable edge rushers, so they went after the secondary. If the CBs they drafted stick, I don’t think this is good news for Reid.

    1. My understanding is that the team has until Monday to pickup Reid’s 5th year option. If they don’t that could be telling.

    2. With his concussion issues, I would not extend him. I’d let him go to the highest bidder and get the comp for him….

      1. I don’t think Ward or Tartt are as good as Reid. Tartt and Ward have missed more games already than Reid with their injuries. Bethea is the odd man out.

  28. Current DBs
    LCB – Brock, Johnson, Davis
    RCB – Acker, Reaser, Cromartie

    Davis and Cromartie are out

  29. It sure seems like Baalke is happy with the skill positions currently on the team. Looks like no influence from Kelly.

    1. Except that new WR Rogers from the CFL. Kelly was in contact with him prior to getting fired.

      1. As you note in your post below, the current WR corps doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence. Maybe the CFL guy will be great, but I wouldn’t cite Duron Carter as a precedent.

        1. Yeah it’s a reach to expect him to be and impact player. Everyone loves that underdog story that Rogers is. This is typical Baalke draft. Lots of defense. I do think he’s addressing the OL issues. Maybe they felt their WR’s didn’t has a chance to perform because of the OL. QB play was huge too in WR success.

          Are there any decent veterans on the FA market? We could see a real drop losing Boldin.

          So is this our WR crew for next year?
          Smith
          Smelter
          Rogers
          Ellington
          Patton
          Simpson/White/Anderson

  30. With the injury history of Williams and Dorsey, this is very much a need pick.. It’s become a case of when not if,those guys get hurt. Now if this guy stays healthy,will be a solid rotation player

    1. Agreed. With the defense playing so much of the game we will need a good rotation. I like this pick.

  31. Blair! A pick I agree with. A good upfield rusher with a lot of strength. Can play outside or inside on passing down.

  32. I don’t believe ILB is that much of a need.. Balkee likes Hodges and wilhoit. Draft one of he’s the best player on your board but as far as need, none of these guys in these rounds are better than Hodges or wilhoit

    1. Agreed, Hodges had some trouble adjusting from a 4-3 to a 3-4 last season. I hope he plays better this season. The whole defense is going through their 3rd system in three seasons.

  33. Theus. Top OT out of high school, pretty good at UGA. Yet another OL. More OL losing their jobs. He can start at RT, if needed.

    1. I don’t know, the report on him is he lacks strength. Probably take him a year or so….

      1. Theus is a former walk-on who has four years of starting experience at the SEC level. He has adequate measureables and good overall awareness. However, he needs to continue to get stronger, refine his technique and play with more of finisher’s mentality. The positive news is that Theus has steadily improved throughout his career. Senior Bowl participate that had some struggles against upper echelon competition. He projects as a developmental day three prospect who has the potential to add depth to an offensive line

        1. You or someone else must have him confused for his brother,Nathan. John was a 5 star recruit who was rated the number 1 to 3 OT in the nation.

          1. Theus was offered by basically any school you can name including: Alabama, LSU, USC, Notre Dame, and FSU.

    2. Some of those OL should lose their jobs. Pears, Devey, Martin, Silberman and maybe Thomas.

        1. Kilgore is servicable when healthy but we do need a better back up. Martin is so young and his fall off in performance is pretty steep from Kilgore.

  34. How bout Tampa and that 2nd round kicker… I wonder if he got the heat Balkee got for picking one in the 5th

  35. Baalke – we don’t need WRs. We’ve got Torrey Smith, and those other guys. Ellington, Patton, whomever else hasn’t been given an opportunity or hasn’t done much with it.

    1. If those guys were any good they’d be starting. It’s why they brought in Smelter, Rogers and are keeping all those other UDFA’s like White and Anderson. Even Jerome Simpson is still on the roster.

      1. Precisely. Hence why Baalke is saying that. Not me. This team has a huge lack of talent at WR. Give Ellington a shot this year. Smith is a starter. Outside of that, not much talent on the team.

        1. You don’t know a thing about the talent of the WRs. What you would know if you knew anything about the 49ers is that we haven’t had a competent OC/WR concept since Mariucci. Harbaugh and Tomsula criminally underutilized WRs. That’s all you “know.”

  36. There goes Dahl. Only Alexander and Turner left if another interior OL is desired.

  37. Matakevich and Wright fit the bill. High volume tacklers, a lot of production.

  38. At WR – Higgins and Cajuste and plenty of others still remain. Come on Chip. Get your WRs.

  39. Grant

    That B/R you posted at 2:11 this morning is now buried on th Redmond thread. Stick a link here too. It was good. Possible the late-risers missed it.

  40. Grant… Disagree. You build a run 1st offense with a line to open up holes. Barry Sanders is no longer in this leauge.

    1. Theus and Cooper are not strong. They won’t be opening any holes next season. The Niners need a running back.

      1. Weather those 2 are strong or not, if we don’t have an adequate line,no rb is running anywhere, except 2 yards in the wrong direction.

        1. Agree, but I’d like to be driving a Ferrari through those holes instead of a Yugo. Hyde’s durability through a season is a concern.

          1. Yea, Hyde had toned up and added muscle while rehabbing. Hopefully that transcendes into a healthy season

      2. Niners drafted a RB in every draft since 2010.

        How many the Seahawks drafted in the same period?

        They drafted 2 this year because the ones they drafted before did not pan out so they were left with a busted 2nd rounder and a UDFA coming off injury.

        Is that how you build a run 1st offense?

  41. Jeff Driskel, well that will solve the QB issues. Baalke really just isn’t interested in the QB position. Why bother if this is your effort. Never heard of this guy, probably a career practice squad player.

    1. For one ‘Zilla to another, I like the QB pick… Yeah, late round, read up on him, has some potential.

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