NFL
Eagles Have Big Plans for Rookie Makai Lemon as A.J. Brown Exit Looms
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2026 NFL Draft - Round One by Emilee Chinn | Getty Images
It’s inevitable at this point that the Eagles will be trading top receiver AJ Brown next month, with multiple league sources saying the veteran receiver is preparing for the trade (New England remains the most likely destination).
And with Brown staying away from spring practices, and head coach Nick Sirriani being more involved in the offensive installation and quarterback Jalen Hurts under fire for a poor 2025 following a Super Bowl win, this is a prime situation for the rookie to make an immediate impact.
Lemon excels at yards after the catch, and with Hurts reluctant to thread the ball into tight windows and push the ball downfield, his ability to turn an underneath pass into an explosive gain looks like a perfect fit. His is twitchy and separates easily from defenders, again, something that should him immediately with Hurts, and rival executives believe he has the ability to be a big producer and vie for rookie of the year.
The Eagles targeted him for a first-round trade, and they have been known for having a high hit rate in such instances.
“He’s a polished receiver,” one longtime personnel executive told me.
“There’s always a learning curve, but I don’t think it’s a steep one for this kid. (General manager) Howie (Roseman) pounced on him for a reason. They have big plans for him.”
Offense Trending Up?
The Eagles offensive line stands to be much better than a year ago, and the Eagles couldn’t be worse at offensive coordinator than they were a year ago.
Brown was openly pouting and disgruntled for much of the season and the scrutiny seemed to be getting to Hurts as well.
The Eagles have a tendency to bounce back from such controversial seasons with a vengeance and are working to reconstruct an offensive identity in the downfield passing game.
Lemon will be the core of that endeavor.
Lemon currently has only the sixth-lowest odds of winning Rookie Of The Year (+950), as per most betting sites that offer NFL odds, and with him on a far more competitive team that most of the others around him and likely playing in more prime time games and with more on the line, SportsBoom wouldn’t discount his chances at all.
First overall pick Fernando Mendoza (Raiders) will likely be on the bench the first four-to-six weeks of the season, for instance.
Lemon will be working with a better quarterback and with better pieces around him than most of the other likely candidates.
La Canfora has covered over 20 Super Bowls and League Meetings and NFL drafts, building a wide network of sources throughout all aspects of the game. He was an award winning print journalist as well, working at The Detroit Free Press and The Baltimore Sun prior to his first stint at The Washington Post. He has covered sporting events around the world, including two Winter Olympics and all of the 2006 World Cup. He attended his first NFL game in 1978, and would soon kindle what has become a lifelong love and appreciation of the sport. La Canfora is also a professional handicapper, specializing in the NFL, creating a daily sports wagering game show - "Wanna Bet?" He also hosts nationally broadcast NFL radio shows in the US, as well as a daily sports radio show in his hometown of Baltimore, Maryland.