The Philadelphia Eagles had to pull some strings to move up in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft and get Makai Lemon.
The rookie out of USC was one of the biggest offseason stories, but not for the best reasons. Injuries and underwhelming performances raised big doubts about his ability to make an impact early on.
Notably, he didn’t do much to appease the doubters in his first taste of NFL action.
The Eagles tried to get him going with some quick-hitters, but he finished the game with three receptions for a negative five yards. Even so, head coach Nick Sirianni was satisfied with the dirty work he did.
Nick Sirianni praises Makai Lemon for his off-ball contributions
“There are a lot of things that Makai did in that game that don’t reflect on the stat sheet,” Sirianni told the media (h/t Cayden Steele). “We constantly talk about that. What are you doing to help this team win the game? Particularly if you’re a skill guy that might not be able to be seen in a stat book or to the naked eye. He’s always done a good job since he’s been here of blocking, doing the right things, being in the right spots.”
The head coach then talked about how doing the little things will get him on the field early and often.
Otherwise, if he’s not making an impact as a skill player and he’s not doing the dirty work, there would simply not be an incentive to play him:
“We trust him because he’s constantly doing the things without the ball that we need to help us win and that we know is going to help us win,” Sirianni added.
While that makes perfect sense, teams don’t draft a wide receiver in the first round to have him block and be a decoy.
They had him as the third wide receiver in three-receiver sets behind DeVonta Smith and Dontayvion Wicks, so they clearly trust him despite the early red flags.
Lemon’s playmaking out of the slot could be crucial to Sean Mannion’s offense, but his limited size also raises doubts about his ability to withstand the physicality of the pro game.
It’s too early to count him out, but with an underwhelming training camp and an even worse debut, his career hasn’t gotten off to a promising start.
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