The first round of the NFL Draft is typically where teams find their next cornerstone players. In fact, 264 of the 555 Pro Bowl appearances by players who’ve entered the league since 2015 were from those drafted in the first round.
But that also means there have been plenty of stars who were selected after Day 1. Over the past 10 years, players who were drafted on Day 2 (in the second and third rounds) have accounted for 166 of those 555 Pro Bowl appearances. There have also been plenty of Pro Bowlers selected on Day 3 (Rounds 4-7), with players selected in those rounds accounting for 90 of the 555 Pro Bowl appearances by players who’ve entered the league since 2015.
Day 3 typically isn’t when teams have found cornerstone players. However, the San Francisco 49ers have gotten a couple of their key players in the final rounds of the draft, while the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs got key contributors to their Super Bowl teams in those last few rounds, too.
As the 2025 NFL Draft projects to be a deep draft, let’s look at the best picks from Day 3 in each of the past 10 drafts.
Honorable mentions: Edge Za’Darius Smith (Baltimore Ravens, No. 122 overall), DT Grady Jarrett (Atlanta Falcons, No. 137 overall), S Quandre Diggs (Detroit Lions, No. 200 overall), TE Darren Waller (Baltimore Ravens, No. 204 overall)
All things considered, the 2015 draft was a pretty great one for the Vikings. After snagging Danielle Hunter on Day 2, they got a fifth-round steal in Diggs on Day 3. They might not have seen Diggs’ best years in Minnesota as he became a four-time Pro Bowler with the Buffalo Bills, but the wide receiver still had a pair of 1,000-yard seasons in receiving during his time with the Vikings. Those campaigns began a six-season stretch in which Diggs crossed the 1,000-yard threshold.
Coincidentally, one of the honorable mentions on this list was also a standout for the Vikings. Smith recorded 10 sacks with Minnesota in 2022. That was one of three years in which Smith posted double-digit sacks as he also had nine quarterback takedowns in 2024, splitting time with the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions.
Waller became one of the success stories of the 2015 draft, becoming one of the league’s best tight ends during his time with the Raiders following a year-long suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy.
Honorable mentions: Edge Matthew Judon (Baltimore Ravens, No. 146 overall), WR Tyreek Hill (Kansas City Chiefs, No. 165 overall)
It’s not often that you’re able to find a franchise quarterback after the first round of the draft. It’s even rarer that you’re able to get one on Day 3.
But that’s what the Cowboys were able to do in 2016, selecting Prescott to initially backup Tony Romo. A back injury to Romo quickly thrust Prescott into the starting lineup at the start of his rookie year, helping Dallas win the division that year. He also earned his first of three Pro Bowl nods that season, winning Offensive Rookie of the Year as well. Prescott also became the highest-paid quarterback in NFL history last offseason.
If it weren’t for the positional value of a quarterback, Hill would be widely viewed as the best Day 3 pick from the 2016 draft. He’s been one of the best receivers in the NFL ever since he entered the league, getting named a Pro Bowler in each of his first eight seasons.
2017: TE George Kittle (San Francisco 49ers, No. 146 overall)
Honorable mentions: S Eddie Jackson (Chicago Bears, No. 112 overall), K Jake Elliott (Cincinnati Bengals, No. 153 overall), LB Matt Milano (Buffalo Bills, No. 163 overall), RB Aaron Jones (Green Bay Packers, No. 182 overall)
The 49ers were able to get one of the game’s best tight ends in recent memory in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft, drafting Kittle after the Denver Broncos selected a different tight end (Jake Butt) with the selection before. Maybe the way San Francisco got Kittle was a little lucky, but his sustained success in the NFL has been far from luck. Kittle became a core piece of the 49ers not long after he arrived in the Bay Area, earning first-team All-Pro honors in 2019. The 49ers made it to the Super Bowl that year and made it again in 2023, when Kittle was named first-team All-Pro again.
Milano and Jones also became core pieces for contending teams in recent years, too. Milano was first-team All-Pro in 2022 while Jones was a Pro Bowler in 2020 after leading the league in rushing touchdowns the year prior.
2018: G Wyatt Teller (Buffalo Bills, No. 166 overall)
Honorable mentions: Edge Josh Sweat (Philadelphia Eagles, No. 130 overall), TE Dalton Schultz (Dallas Cowboys, No. 137 overall), CB D.J. Reed (San Francisco 49ers, No. 152 overall), LB Zaire Franklin (Indianapolis Colts, No. 235 overall)
The Bills landed three Pro Bowlers in the 2018 NFL Draft, including Josh Allen, but they traded one of them after their rookie year. Teller, who Buffalo selected in the fifth round of that year’s draft, was moved to the Cleveland Browns for fifth- and sixth-round picks in the 2020 draft on the eve of the 2019 season. After serving as a backup for a bit, Teller became a regular starter for Cleveland late in the 2019 season before emerging as one of the game’s best guards in 2020, helping the Browns’ run game take off that year. He’s earned three Pro Bowl nods and two All-Pro honors over his career.
The Eagles, meanwhile, were able to find a pretty big piece to their Super Bowl LIX-winning squad in the fourth round of the 2018 draft. Sweat had a case to win MVP of Super Bowl LIX, recording 2.5 sacks in that game.
2019: Edge Maxx Crosby (Raiders, No. 106 overall)
Honorable mentions: S Julian Love (New York Giants, No. 108 overall), RB Tony Pollard (Dallas Cowboys, No. 128 overall), LB Drue Tranquill (Los Angeles Chargers, No. 130 overall), LB Dre Greenlaw (San Francisco 49ers, No. 148 overall), WR Hunter Renfrow (Raiders, No. 149 overall), LB Andrew Van Ginkel (Miami Dolphins, No. 151 overall)
The Raiders had three first-round picks in the 2019 NFL Draft, but the best player they got that year was selected at the start of Day 3. Crosby was drafted in the fourth round that year, outshining top-five pick and fellow defensive end Clelin Ferrell in their rookie season together with the Raiders. He recorded 10 sacks that year and has arguably become one of the league’s best defensive players over the last four, as he’s been a rare highly-productive every-down player along the edge. He earned his fourth straight Pro Bowl this past season after recording 7.5 sacks in just 12 games.
Crosby wasn’t the only notable player the Raiders got on Day 3 of the 2019 draft. Renfrow was one of the best slot wide receivers in the NFL for a bit after he got drafted by the Raiders. Elsewhere, Greenlaw became another Day 3 hit for John Lynch.
2020: CB L’Jarius Snead (Kansas City Chiefs, No. 138 overall)
Honorable mentions: WR Gabe Davis (Buffalo Bills, No. 128 overall), C Tyler Biadasz (Dallas Cowboys, No. 146 overall), WR Darnell Mooney (Chicago Bears, No. 173 overall), G Mike Onwenu (New England Patriots, No. 182 overall)
There weren’t many diamonds in the rough in the 2020 draft. Following the 2024 season, Biadasz is the only player from that draft class to have been named a Pro Bowler.
But Snead gets the edge in our list here due to his contributions to two Super Bowl titles for the Chiefs. He and Trent McDuffie formed one of the league’s best cornerback duos for a couple of seasons in Kansas City as Snead recorded 10 interceptions over his four years in Kansas City.
2021: WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (Detroit Lions, No. 112 overall)
Honorable mentions: C Drew Dalman (Atlanta Falcons, No. 114 overall), S Camryn Bynum (Minnesota Vikings, No. 125 overall), CB Deommodore Lenoir (San Francisco 49ers, No. 172 overall), S Talona Hufanga (San Francisco 49ers, No. 180 overall), G Trey Smith (Kansas City Chiefs, No. 226 overall), G Will Fries (Indianapolis Colts, No. 248 overall)
The Lions’ sudden turnaround can be credited to their drafting in recent years. The selection of St. Brown is one of the best cases of that, which landed them one of the game’s best wide receivers in the fourth round. Even as the Lions looked listless in 2021, St. Brown had 912 receiving yards as a rookie. He’s only gotten better since then, earning three Pro Bowl nods.
Day 3 of the 2021 draft was certainly a good one to find an interior offensive lineman as well. Dalman, Smith and Fries each recently became among the highest-paid players at their positions. Meanwhile, the 49ers were able to find a pair of defensive backs in Lenoir and Hufanga who helped them compete in recent years, adding more credence to the idea that nailing your late-round picks is important.
2022: QB Brock Purdy (San Francisco 49ers, No. 262 overall)
Honorable mentions: TE Jake Ferguson (Dallas Cowboys, No. 129 overall), OT Zach Tom (Green Bay Packers, No. 140 overall), CB Tariq Woolen (Seattle Seahawks, No. 153 overall), RB Kyren Williams (Los Angeles Chargers, No. 164 overall), CB DaRon Bland (Dallas Cowboys, No. 167 overall), RB Isiah Pacheco (Kansas City Chiefs, No. 251 overall)
Lynch continued his success of finding talent on Day 3 of the draft in 2022. The 49ers selected Purdy with the final selection of that year’s draft, and he quickly became the most relevant “Mr. Irrelevant” in NFL history. Following injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo, Purdy took over as the 49ers’ starting quarterback late in the 2022 season and helped them get to the NFC Championship Game. He set a record for the best passer rating for a quarterback in his first five career starts.
Is Brock Purdy a top 10 QB?
Purdy proved that the 2022 season wasn’t a fluke with his play in 2023. He led the league in passer rating that year, helping the 49ers get back to the Super Bowl. Now, he’s reportedly in line to receive a contract worth over $50 million, a substantial raise from the $724,000 he made as a rookie.
Honorable mentions: OT Dawand Jones (Cleveland Browns, No. 111 overall)
It’s only been two years, but it’s pretty clear Nacua is the best player to come from Day 3 of the 2023 NFL Draft. The Rams’ fifth-round pick usurped Cooper Kupp as Matthew Stafford’s go-to wide receiver in Los Angeles almost right away, setting the record for most receiving yards ever by a rookie (1,486). Nacua missed a good portion of the 2024 season, but he was still highly productive in Year 2. He had 79 receptions for 990 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games last season, finishing third in receiving yards per game.
Honorable mentions: RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (New York Giants, No. 166 overall), CB Tarheeb Still (Los Angeles Chargers, No. 137 overall)
The 2024 draft was a good one to find a running back on Day 3. Tampa Bay was able to add another productive playmaker to its offense in the fourth round, as Irving rushed for 1,122 yards on 5.4 yards per carry as a rookie.
The departure of Saquon Barkley and his instant success with the Eagles obviously stung for Giants fans, but Tracy at least soothed that pain a little bit as a rookie this past season. He rushed for 839 yards on 4.4 yards per carry, showing some promise as the year went along.
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