NFL Draft 2026 Day 2 Winners and Losers: Cardinals Confound With Carson Beck Pick

Arizona opted to take the Miami quarterback over a number of other positions of need. Plus, the Jets might’ve gotten the steal of the draft.

Carson Beck is now a member of the Arizona Cardinals, joining a quarterback room where he’ll have a chance to win the starting job. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

First-Round Grades | Best Available Players | Rounds 2-3 Grades Fernando Mendoza is Tom Brady’s successor | Ty Simpson will test Sean McVay | Cardinals made the right pick | Rounds 2-3 winners and losers

Get NFL prospect scouting reports, second- and third-round grades and team breakdowns in SI’s draft tracker.

PITTSBURGH — The second night of the 2026 NFL draft offered a few emotional storylines, along with some awkward moments involving Cardinals running back and Pittsburgh product James Conner. 

Steelers star defensive tackle Cameron Heyward, who has served as a draft host in Pittsburgh, likely forgot that the Cardinals used the No. 3 pick on running back Jeremiyah Love the night prior before asking Conner for his thoughts on Arizona’s first two selections. 

Conner likely knows that his role will be reduced in 2026 with the arrival of Love, but he handled the question like a professional and referred to his new rookie teammate as a “beast.” Conner later returned to the podium on Friday night to begin the third round, stunning the draft crowd with the announcement of Miami quarterback Carson Beck, who could be competing with Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew II for the starting role in Arizona. 

And for another surprise, I didn’t expect to see the combo of rapper Wiz Khalifa and rock icon Bret Michaels hit the stage together for a performance before teams were on the clock on Friday. New Steelers offensive lineman Max Iheanachor, the team’s first-round pick, also went on stage with Wiz Khalifa to be his massive hype man.  

As for those emotional storylines, Avieon Terrell will get to play with his older brother, A.J., after the Falcons selected him with the No. 48 pick in the second round. 

Big man defensive tackle Kayden McDonald unleashed tears on his walk to the draft stage while soaking in the moment of being the Texans’ No. 36 pick. McDonald told reporters during his news conference that the Texans will win the Super Bowl, a statement that’s hard to disagree with given all the talent on DeMeco Ryans’s defense. 

But before we get to my winners and question marks/losers for Rounds 2 and 3, shoutout to the person in the media workroom who sprinkled Tajin on the watermelon. It was nice to get some seasoning on my fruit. 

Anyway, here are my Day 2 thoughts, with the Cardinals landing in both sections. 

WINNERS

Browns draft two more players with first-round talent 

The Browns’ 2026 draft is playing out similarly to last year, when the team landed a class that ended up producing a handful of impactful starters, including defensive tackle Mason Graham, linebacker Carson Schwesinger and running back Quinshon Judkins.

For this year’s group, Cleveland has added versatile offensive lineman Spencer Fano, speedy wideout KC Concepcion, physical wide receiver Denzel Boston and playmaking safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, all picks from the first two rounds. 

---

Denzel Boston was yet another potential first-round prospect to land with the Cleveland Browns. | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

It remains to be seen whether the influx of young talent will finally lead to wins for Cleveland, but the team is at least building a well-rounded roster, which seems strange to say because there’s no franchise quarterback in place unless Shedeur Sanders takes a step forward in Year 2 or Deshaun Watson turns back the clock to his Houston days. 

Boston’s presence will likely benefit the to-be-determined starting quarterback for Cleveland. He specializes at contested catches, and it doesn’t make much sense that he lasted until pick No. 39. 

---

Cardinals’ decision for Love now makes more sense 

I’m still not totally convinced the Cardinals made the right decision to take Love at No. 3, especially with all the depth at the position with Conner, Trey Benson and free-agent addition Tyler Allgeier. 

But a day later, the move looks better because Arizona used the No. 34 selection on Chase Bisontis, one of the better guard prospects in this draft. He’ll certainly help improve the Cardinals’ poor run blocking. 

As for a different thought, if the Cardinals’ run blocking is better in 2026, wouldn’t the trio of Conner, Benson and Allgeier be enough to form a productive rushing attack? I still find myself thinking the better option for the Cardinals would have been to draft Arvell Reese or Fano. But, hey, at least Arizona has an elite weapon in Love and should be better in the trenches with the arrival of Bisontis. And maybe that could help a potential rookie starting quarterback, which will be addressed in the question marks section.  

---

Texans’ elite defense may have gained another cornerstone player  

Houston has had a strong start to the NFL draft by improving both sides of the trenches.

On Thursday, the Texans received some criticism for drafting guard Keylan Rutledge at No. 26, which was viewed as a reach by some, but he's terrific in the run game and C.J. Stroud needed more stout blockers. As for the team’s first pick on Friday, not many had an issue with the Texans selecting McDonald, possibly the best defensive tackle in the draft. 

McDonald will need time to develop as a pass rusher, but his ability to clog lanes and command attention will be a benefit for Houston’s star edge rushers Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter. The Texans have needed to get younger in the middle of their defensive line for quite some time, and it’s now hard to believe this stacked defense possibly just gained another cornerstone player. 

---

Indiana standout D’Angelo Ponds was taken by the Jets in the third round, adding to an impressive early haul by New York. | Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Jets get a draft steal with the arrival of D’Angelo Ponds 

The Jets are back-to-back winners through two days of the draft. It’s a new day for Gang Green because this franchise accustomed to losing has absolutely nailed the draft with four more rounds to go.

To summarize, New York added three potential immediate impact players in Round 1 with the selections of edge rusher David Bailey, tight end Kenyon Sadiq and wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. 

On Friday, the Jets rolled the dice on Ponds and looked past his lack of size at 5' 9" and 180 pounds. This move will likely pay off because of Ponds’s elite speed and excellent instincts, and he’s polished enough to crack Aaron Glenn’s starting rotation in the secondary. Ponds, who had 36 passes defensed in three seasons at Indiana, will surely be making plenty of game-changing plays for a team that didn’t record a single interception last season. 

Also, I approve of this pick by New York because Ponds was listed as one of my players that will end up being a steal from the 2026 draft.  

QUESTION MARKS

Did the Cardinals make a mistake by taking Beck?

The selection of Beck was one of the biggest surprises on Friday partly because it seemed as if the Cardinals were content with finding their long-term quarterback in the 2027 draft. That could still very well be the case, especially because the team doesn’t have to fully commit to a third-round pick. 

But, as mentioned above, the Cardinals already had Brissett and Minshew on the roster and have multiple other needs on the roster. They did improve the trenches with Bisontis, but there’s still a gaping hole at right tackle. A more seasoned quarterback like Brissett is certainly capable of playing around the weakness on the right side, which could mean Beck won’t be a viable option to open the season as the starter. 

Sure, Beck could get some run in the second half of the season if the Cardinals lose often in September and October. Still, he appears to be more of a No. 2 option than a potential franchise quarterback. This was a head scratcher by the Cardinals.

---

Kyle Shanhan may have reached by selecting Ole Miss receiver standout De'Zhaun Stribling. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Did the 49ers reach for De’Zhaun Stribling?

I wrote earlier this month that the 49ers couldn’t afford to get complacent at wide receiver even after the splash signing of Mike Evans because of his recent injuries and entering his age-33 season. 

Also, depth was an issue because Christian Kirk can’t be trusted to stay healthy and Ricky Pearsall, the 2024 first rounder, remains unproven due to his lack of availability to start his career.    

So, I should like the team’s decision to open Day 2 of the draft with Stribling, the 6' 2", 207-pound wideout from Ole Miss. But I can’t help but to think San Francisco would have been better off with the 6' 3", 212-pound Boston, a more dynamic pass-catching option who went to Cleveland a few picks later at No. 39. Yes, Stribling does seem to be the better blocker of the two, which is a plus for coach Kyle Shanahan. Still, the team reached for Stribling, the No. 143 player on Daniel Flick’s draft big board.     

---

Should the Raiders have gone with Ponds instead of Treydan Stukes?

Let’s not just stop at Ponds. The Raiders could have added Boston to give new quarterback Fernando Mendoza a perimeter playmaker with a sizable catch radius, which would have been a dream scenario. 

Instead of nabbing Ponds or Boston, the Silver and Black went with Stukes at No. 38. Perhaps the team was turned off by Ponds’s lack of size and went with the bigger 6' 1" Stukes, but that won’t make much sense if Las Vegas has Stukes play on the inside, a role Ponds would have thrived in. 

---

Will Drew Allar ever be a starting option for the Steelers?

I don’t totally dislike the third-round selection of Allar because he might offer more upside than 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard. On the other hand, he might have durability concerns after missing the back half of his final collegiate season at Penn State due to a left ankle injury. 

It seems as if the Steelers are afraid to draft a quarterback in the first two rounds partly because of how poorly it went with the 2022 first-round selection of Kenny Pickett and maybe the team doesn’t want to upset Aaron Rodgers, who still hasn’t publicly announced he’s returning for his age-43 season.  

Eventually, the Steelers are going to need to draft a quarterback in the earlier rounds. But at least they have depth at the position in order to not start from scratch once they eventually move on from Rodgers.

---