The Philadelphia Eagles made the tough decision to move on from three-time Pro Bowler A.J. Brown in a trade and have replaced him with rookie first-round pick Makai Lemon.
There are some big differences between Brown and Lemon, but the Eagles traded up three spots to get Lemon, so the expectations are high for the young receiver. CBS Sports writer Josh Edwards ranked the 10 rookies with the most pressure to succeed in Year 1, with Lemon ranking fifth on the list.
"Lemon's presence on this list is directly tied to the A.J. Brown departure. The Eagles acquired Dontayvion Wicks and signed Hollywood Brown, but the wide receiver need was not satiated until Lemon's selection. He figures to be an integral part of Sean Mannion's new look offense. No. 20 overall is roughly where Lemon had been projected. He is smaller in stature but plays bigger than his size."
Eagles need Makai Lemon to play well from Day 1 in Philly
Lemon already had a ton of hype heading into the 2026 NFL Draft after a stellar final season in college with the USC Trojans. He caught 79 passes for 1,156 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2025, while also winning the Fred Biletnikoff Award for being the nation's best wide receiver.
It will be hard to compare the careers of Lemon and Brown since it is early on, but there are some significant differences between the two. Lemon is more of a slot receiver, while Brown is an outside receiver. Dontayvion Wicks is physically replacing Brown's spot on the outside, and DeVonta Smith will hold strong on the opposite side as the number one receiver.
OTAs showed some good signs with Lemon that should make Eagles fans feel comfortable with his selection. While he dealt with a very minor injury early on, highlights of minicamp showed that Lemon is a great route runner, reliable receiver, and quick with his feet.
The Eagles needed to add as much talent at wide receiver as possible to give quarterback Jalen Hurts all the weapons he can have at his disposal. Also, the future needs to be set up for the offense with Smith and Lemon appearing to be the top two guys for a long time.
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Training camp will be the next step for Lemon, but the pressure is on him to play well and prove that the Eagles were right to move on from Brown. A slow start could have many Eagles fans' hands hovering over the panic button quickly, with a lot of jobs on the line.
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