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The Philadelphia Eagles traded up in the 2026 NFL draft to take USC WR Makai Lemon

One of the biggest stories to come out of the 2026 NFL draft was the wild situation involving USC wide receiver Makai Lemon.

The Philadelphia Eagles ultimately drafted the reigning Biletnikoff award winner with the 20th overall pick after trading up from 23 with the Dallas Cowboys.

The rare in-division trade was a shocker to many, especially since Lemon was on the phone with the Pittsburgh Steelers when the Eagles announced they had drafted him.

The scene was captured on video and shared thousands of times on social media showing Lemon’s surprised reaction to how everything played out.

Cowboys Insider: Eagles Tipped Off About Lemon

GettyThe Pittsburgh Steelers just missed out on drafting USC WR Makai Lemon.

During an appearance on the “House of Haymaker” podcast, Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram recounted how the draft night scenario played out — and he says the Cowboys purposely leaked the Steelers were planning to take Lemon to the Eagles to entice them to trade up for him.

“Pittsburgh is pissed about this,” Harris stated. “They feel like Dallas duped them, especially with the draft being in Pittsburgh — they felt embarrassed on a national stage. … The Cowboys are sitting there on the clock at pick 20. They were planning on taking Malachi Lawrence right there, but entering that pick they wanted to trade back.

“They had been tipped off, somehow, that Makai Lemon was going to be the pick for the Pittsburgh Steelers. … It could have been as simple as somebody in the Dallas war room shooting a text to somebody in the Pittsburgh war room and being like, ‘Hey, who are y’all taking here?’ And them thinking the Cowboys are taking defense — ‘Oh, we’re taking Makai Lemon.’

“The Cowboys call Philadelphia and they’re like, ‘Hey, the Steelers are going to take Makai Lemon, we know you want a receiver — come up here, do this deal with us, give us two fourth-round picks. And they did. Pittsburgh is pissed. Multiple sources have told me [that].”

Whether or not that’s what happened, the Eagles ultimately came out on top. Lemon, who record 79 receptions for 1,156 yards and 11 touchdowns last season at USC, will slide into A.J. Brown’s spot if and when he’s traded to New England on or after June 1.

Cowboys Respond to Steelers’ Reported Frustration

GettyDallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said he didn’t mean to upset the Steelers by trading with the Eagles in Round 1 of the 2026 NFL draft

To make things worse for the Steelers, the NFL is looking into the Lemon situation and they could face possible discipline for being on the phone (while not officially on the clock) while the Eagles, who were on the clock, were trying to get ahold of him.

Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones told reporters that there was no underhandedness going on when he made the trade with the Eagles, though given the context of what happened, it’s unlikely that many believe him.

“I don’t want to get on their bad side,” Jones said. “I’m sorry if they’re mad. But, boy, I’ll tell you what, we’ve had it happen to us a bunch of times. It [was] traded right out from under us.”

After losing out on Lemon moments prior, the Steelers ended up picking Arizona State offensive tackle Max Iheanachor with the 21st overall pick. Pittsburgh got its receiver in Round 2, selecting Alabama’s Germie Bernard.

The Eagles grabbed Vanderbilt tight end Eli Stowers in the second round, and they went offense again in the next three rounds, picking Miami offensive tackle Markel Bell in Round 3, North Dakota State quarterback Cole Payton in Round 5, and Georgia guard Micah Morris in Round 6.