NFL draft prospects rate themselves on Madden
USAT’s Chris Bumbaka asked several top NFL Draft prospects how they would rate themselves in Madden after their rookie year.
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Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft is approaching, and there are plenty of surprises.
Most notably, Tennessee cornerback Jermod McCoy, widely considered a top-10 talent, was not selected due to concerns about a knee injury. Several other players fell in the second and third rounds, but were ultimately picked up by their teams later in the evening.
These high-value picks were created by some head-scratching decisions by NFL teams. That included a strange selection at the top of the second round and a surprising result in which eight tight ends were selected out of 68 picks in the second and third rounds of the draft.
What were the most questionable picks on Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft? Below are the six most confusing selections based on both value and strategy.
2026 NFL Draft Day 2: The most puzzling picks
San Francisco 49ers: WR Dezhorn Stribling, Ole Miss (33rd)
The 49ers were selected first overall in the second round. With the 33rd pick, many thought they would target Denzel Boston, who was widely considered to be a first-round talent in mock drafts.
Instead, John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan selected Stribling. The Ole Miss product was a late starter heading into the 2026 NFL Draft, but few expected him to be one of the first receivers selected on day two.
Stribling has decent size (6-2, 207 pounds), ran the 40-yard dash in 4.36 seconds, and was good at holding the ball against Ole Miss. That could give him a chance to emerge as a playmaker in San Francisco’s offense alongside Mike Evans and Ricky Pearsall.
That said, Stribling was the No. 147 player on USA TODAY Sports’ Top 150 Big Board. So drafting him 33rd overall was definitely a reach, especially with a player like Boston still on the board.
Jacksonville Jaguars: TE Nate Verkacher, Texas A&M (No. 56)
The Jaguars traded up in 2025 to acquire Travis Hunter, so they did not receive a first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. They made their first selection at No. 56 overall and surprised many by selecting a tight end in the second round.
It wasn’t just the ranking that surprised me. The Jaguars ended up selecting Berkircher, who was considered more of a third-day pick than a second-day option. He never cracked USA TODAY Sports’ top 150 big boards and never had more than 19 catches or 198 yards in a season during his five-year college career.
Regardless, the Jaguars have already established Brenton Strange as their No. 1 tight end. The 2023 second-round pick had the best season of his career with 46 catches for 540 yards and three touchdowns.
Perhaps Jacksonville is trying to keep Strange from leaving in free agency, but Verkircher is still positioned as a complementary tight end at the NFL level. He could be a solid No. 2 tight end, but spending a second-round pick on a player like that, especially a 25-year-old rookie, is certainly questionable.
Houston Texans: TE Marlin Klein, Michigan State (59th)
Klein wasn’t as surprised by the second-round tight end selection as Berkircher, but most rated the Michigan product as a Day 3 prospect.
Klein has an impressive frame at 6-6, 248 pounds and ran the 40-yard dash in 4.61 seconds at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine. While he definitely has upside, he started just 12 games in college and totaled 38 catches for 364 yards and one touchdown over four seasons at Michigan.
That means Klein is a promising player. He’s going to need time to develop to the next level, and it’s worth wondering if he can surpass Cade Stover for the backup job behind Dalton Schultz heading into his rookie season.
Arizona Cardinals: QB Carson Beck (65th)
There was some speculation that the Cardinals would select Carson Beck with the 34th overall pick. While they deserve credit for not doing that and landing quality guard Chase Visontis to shore up the blocking in front of Jeremiah Love, it’s fair to wonder how important Beck’s upgrade is to Arizona’s quarterback room.
The good: Beck is an experienced sixth-year quarterback who started 43 games at the University of Georgia and the University of Miami. He has typical size (6-4, 220 pounds) and throws with good touch and anticipation. The bad: There are concerns about his arm strength (it was only average in 2025, his first season after undergoing UCL surgery in his throwing elbow) and he tends to struggle under pressure.
Beck’s overall rating boils down to one thing. Does he have the ceiling necessary to be a starting quarterback, or does he have the profile of a career backup? The Cardinals’ selection of him seems to indicate they believe he can be the former.
If Beck can’t accomplish that goal, Arizona could end up with an early pick in the 2027 NFL Draft, which is considered strong at the quarterback position. If that happens, the Cardinals may end up regretting their decision to take a backup quarterback with a third-round pick, especially since they were within range of acquiring more trench help like Beck’s teammate, offensive tackle Markelle Bell, and a productive edge rusher like Romello Hight.
Las Vegas Raiders: CB Treydan Stokes (Arizona State) (38th), Edge Keylon Crawford (Auburn) (67th overall)
Just to be clear, Stokes and Crawford fit perfectly into their respective draft ranges. The Raiders’ overall strategy in the 2026 NFL Draft makes them a head-scratching selection.
The Raiders spent the first overall pick on Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza. Many expected Las Vegas to focus on upgrading its supporting cast on Day 2, as the team still had holes on the offensive line and needed to shore up on the receiver side to give Mendoza a fighting chance as a rookie if he started in place of veteran Kirk Cousins.
Instead, Vegas used their first two selections on defense. They did it despite having receiver Denzel Boston at No. 38 and a trio of quality receivers in Chris Brazzell II, Ted Hurst and Antonio Williams at No. 67.
The Raiders compensated for their defensive emphasis by taking Interior offensive lineman Trey Zuune III with the 91st overall pick, but if they don’t get a quality receiver on Day 3, Mendoza or Cousins could have a frustrating season.
