A look at the Makai Lemon NFL Draft profile, including a scouting report, his college highlights and stats, and a draft projection.
Winning the Fred Biletnikoff award this past season, there is little doubt that Makai Lemon is one of the best receiving prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft. With over 1,150 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns last season, the Makai Lemon NFL Draft profile gives us a clear picture of what kind of player some team will get in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Let’s take a look at our Makai Lemon NFL Draft profile, including his stats, scouting report, college highlights, and more!
Makai Lemon NFL Draft Profile 2026
Makai Lemon
Position: Wide Receiver
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 192 lbs
Age: 21
College: USC Trojans
Makai Lemon Stats 2025
Although he saw limited playing time in 2023, Lemon quickly burst onto the scene and became USC’s top receiver for his final two years with the team. Here are Makai Lemon’s college stats last season with USC:
Games: 12
Receptions: 79
Receiving Yards: 1,156
Total Touchdowns: 11
Makai Lemon Highlights
When is the 2026 NFL Draft?
The 2026 NFL Draft kicks off on Thursday, April 23, beginning at 8 p.m. ET. The draft will take place in Pittsburgh, PA. Only Round 1 will take place on Thursday. Rounds 2-3 will take place on April 24th, with the remaining four rounds wrapping up on Saturday, April 25th. There will be 257 players selected across the seven rounds, with many more getting phone calls immediately afterward.
Makai Lemon Scouting Report
Strengths
There’s a reason that some analysts are drawing comparisons between Makai Lemon and Amon-Ra St. Brown. Lemon is a good slot receiver who has the quick acceleration and separation needed to get away from his man quickly. He doesn’t drop passes and, for the most part, runs really sharp routes as well. Most impressively, he’s more than willing to help in run blocking, which is a must to produce at the NFL level. He wins contested catches more than not and has shown the ability to produce at a high volume.
Weaknesses
As partially mentioned earlier, he runs most routes well, but not all. He often looks impatient on more complicated routes, and it appears as if he rushes through double move routes. While Lemon does flash some ability after the catch, he does leave NFL teams wanting more when compared to other prospects like Carnell Tate. Lemon also doesn’t have the breakaway speed many NFL teams are looking for in a receiver in the current league.
For more 2026 NFL Draft profiles, check out our NFL Draft page!
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Makai Lemon NFL Draft Projection | Expert 2026 NFL Mock Draft Projections
These Makai Lemon NFL Draft projections are from before the NFL Free Agency signings took place, so there will be plenty of updates, news reports and more before the actual draft. These mock draft projections are coming from ESPN, CBS Sports, The Athletic, USA Today and NFL Network.
| SOURCE | TEAM | RD | PK |
| ESPN | Jets (via trade) | 1 | 12 |
| CBS Sports | Jets (via trade) | 1 | 16 |
| The Athletic | Panthers | 1 | 19 |
| USA Today | Chiefs | 1 | 9 |
| NFL Network | Rams | 1 | 13 |
2026 NFL Draft Order | First Round
Carnell Tate will likely hear his name called within the first 10 picks of the NFL Draft, but where will he go? Here is the 2026 NFL Draft order.
- Las Vegas Raiders
- New York Jets
- Arizona Cardinals
- Tennessee Titans
- New York Giants
- Cleveland Browns
- Washington Commanders
- New Orleans Saints
- Kansas City Chiefs
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Miami Dolphins
- Dallas Cowboys
- Los Angeles Rams (via ATL)
- Baltimore Ravens
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- New York Jets (via IND)
- Detroit Lions
- Minnesota Vikings
- Carolina Panthers
- Dallas Cowboys (via GB)
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Los Angeles Chargers
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Cleveland Browns (via JAX)
- Chicago Bears
- Buffalo Bills
- San Francisco 49ers
- Houston Texans
- Kansas City Chiefs (via LAR)
- Denver Broncos
- New England Patriots
- Seattle Seahawks
