Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Philadelphia Eagles made a bold move during the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft, trading up just three spots to secure their top target.
- General manager Howie Roseman handed over three total selections to the Cowboys to ensure the player would be wearing Eagles green this fall.
- The selection signals the front office is preparing for the departure of AJ Brown and prioritizing immediate impact over long-term draft strategy.
The Philadelphia Eagles panicked during the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft. After two wide receivers were taken slightly earlier than projected, general manager Howie Roseman believed his target wouldn't make it to pick No. 23.
That resulted in a lopsided trade to move up just three spots to No. 20 overall. Not only that, Roseman handed over three total selections to a division rival, the Dallas Cowboys, just to make sure USC wide receiver Makai Lemon would be wearing Eagles green this fall.
Holy overpay, Batman. Despite Roseman seemingly making the right choice to jump up ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers to grab Lemon, will he really be worth three picks in the future? There's video of the hilarious confusion when Lemon — speaking with the Steelers, thinking he was getting selected 21st overall — is then taken one pick earlier by Philadelphia after the trade with Dallas.
Here is the moment Makai Lemon thought he was getting drafted by #Steelers and realizing in real time that the #Eagles traded up, via @gmfb this morning.
— Ross McCorkle (@Ross_McCorkle) April 24, 2026
He asked Omar Khan "Why is Philly calling [me]?" pic.twitter.com/AbXDJONYye
The Cowboys had just received word George Pickens was signing his franchise tag, which made Jerry Jones inclined to move back in the first place. Roseman, knowing this, shouldn't have fallen victim to the panic of the moment and given up an additional two selections just to make it happen.
"We just felt like this was a player that we wanted to go up and get just based on where our board was at that time," Roseman said via The Athletic's Zach Berman. "Just felt like it made a lot of sense based on our board. And obviously, when you have a player that you like, that's ranked higher on your board than what you're picking, you think at every pick he's going to be selected."
Eagles overpaid rival Cowboys to snag AJ Brown's replacement in round one of NFL Draft
Lemon's strengths better outweigh his weaknesses for this trade to work out. His 5-foot-11, 192-pound frame doesn't give him the best chance at being the strongest receiver on the field and his speed reportedly can be foiled by engagement with defenders.
So in the end, Roseman basically gave up a quarter of their draft capital to select Devonta Smith 2.0 while confirming to the public what the rest of the league already knew: AJ Brown will not be an Eagle come Week 1 of the 2026 NFL season.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported ahead of the draft that Philadelphia and the New England Patriots essentially have an agreement in principle to make a swap for the 28-year-old pass catcher come June 1. The only reason for the delay is so the Eagles can spread out Brown's salary cap hit across two seasons.
Any ambiguity — and hope for preserving what few bridges are left between Brown and the team — is totally gone after Roseman selected Lemon on Thursday. It makes his claim in March that Brown would remain an Eagle look all the more shady. Combined with Schefter's reporting, fans - and other teams for that matter — can never take Roseman at his word again.
The business side of the NFL is a fickle one but that's typically the only thing you can rely on to stay constant about it, especially around the draft. Philadelphia played the game and got their guy but only time will tell if it was actually a worthy investment (a la Jalen Reagor).
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