New England Patriots turned down Cleveland Browns again in pursuit of QB Jimmy Garoppolo

The New England Patriots turned down another inquiry from the Cleveland Browns about a trade involving backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.

The Browns inquired Thursday night during the NFL Draft about acquiring the 25-year-old Garoppolo and were told once again the Patriots were not interested, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

As the opening of draft night wore on, the Browns watched three top quarterback prospects go off the board in the first 12 picks as three teams traded up for a quarterback in the first round.

The Chicago Bears (No. 2, Mitch Trubisky), Kansas City Chiefs (No. 10, Patrick Mahomes II) and Houston Texans (No. 12, Deshaun Watson) took quarterbacks, leaving the Browns still searching for one.

"Obviously, it didn't happen (Thursday), but it's not like we didn't try, I can guarantee you that," Browns coach Hue Jackson said Thursday night.

The Browns will get another chance to draft one of the remaining quarterback prospects at No. 52 on Friday night.

Garoppolo started the Patriots' first two games of 2016 as Tom Brady served a four-game suspension as part of the Deflategate penalties.

In those two games, Garoppolo completed over 71 percent of his passes for 496 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. He injured his right throwing shoulder late in the second quarter of his second start, and then missed the team's next two games before returning to his backup role for the rest of the season.

Garoppolo, a 2014 second-round pick out of Eastern Illinois, is entering the final year of his rookie contract with a base salary of $820,077.

Cody Kessler, a 2016 third-round pick out of USC, is currently projected as the Browns' starting quarterback.

In March, the Browns acquired Brock Osweiler in a surprise trade with the Houston Texans, but the quarterback's status with the team remains in limbo.

The Browns acquired Osweiler and draft picks by taking Osweiler's $16 million guaranteed contract off the Texans' books. Houston signed Osweiler to a four-year contract worth $72 million with $37 million guaranteed last year.

After the trade, all signs indicated Osweiler would either be traded again or released before the 2017 season.