“The Eagles needed a WR2 and couldn’t trade up to get the offensive tackles they desired. Lemon is still one of the top wideouts in the draft and was the second wideout taken behind Carnell Tate (No. 4 overall).
When the Eagles trade up in the draft, it’s for an impact player — as has been shown over the past five years. They haven’t messed on DeVonta Smith, Jordan Davis, Jalen Carter, and Jihaad Campbell — four starters (three premium players) on this roster.
Lemon has the same trajectory as those four, and should thrive learning with Smith. Eagles wide receiver coach Aaron Moorehead will get a high draft pick to develop as well, and has been credited for developing Smith into a three-time 1,000-yard wideout.
He plays similar to Smith and Lions star Amon-Ra St. Brown, which is a massive plus for the Eagles.
The only reason this pick wasn’t an A+ is because the Eagles missed on Kadyn Proctor, Vega Ioane, Monroe Freeling, and Kenyon Sadiq — but Proctor and Ioane went in the top 15 while trading up for Sadiq and Freeling was too rich for the Eagles’ blood. They’ll address offensive line later in this draft with their Day 2 picks.”
— Jeff Kerr
