Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman built his reputation on bold first-round trades. On April 23, 2026, he added perhaps his most aggressive move yet when the Eagles traded up with division rival Dallas to draft USC wide receiver Makai Lemon at No. 20 overall.
Roseman targeted Lemon with the 20th overall pick. Philadelphia held the 23rd selection, three spots behind where they needed to be. Pittsburgh sat at No. 21 with the exact same target in mind.
Howie Roseman
Feb 24, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Dallas held the 20th pick and wanted to move down. Cowboys executive Stephen Jones directed his staff to contact Roseman without delay. “Just call Howie,” someone in the Dallas war room suggested onESPN’s The Pick Is In documentary.
Behind the scenes of #Eagles GM Howie Roseman working to trade up with the #Cowboys to get WR Makai Lemon + how Philly struggled to get him on the phone because the Steelers were talking to him.
“Can we not get him on the phone?!”
(via @Eagles YT) pic.twitter.com/5Ulf2LgHXX
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) May 7, 2026
“We’d for sure do it for the two fourths,” Jones told Roseman during the call. “I’ll throw you a next year seven.” “OK, we’ve got a deal,” Roseman replied to seal the agreement.
Philadelphia sent the 23rd pick and two 2026 fourth-round selections to Dallas. The Eagles received the 20th pick and a 2027 seventh-round choice in return. The exchange between the NFC East rivals took only minutes to finalize.
Howie Roseman nearly lost Makai Lemon to Steelers after Eagles draft trade
The hard part started the moment the trade became official. Roseman needed to reach Lemon before the draft clock expired. Three minutes and 45 seconds remained when panic set in across the room.
Lemonwas already on the phone with Pittsburgh general manager Omar Khan. Khan had no idea that Philadelphia had just traded ahead of his Steelers.
“Can we not get him on the phone?” Rosemanasked his staff. He then told his team to keep trying until the line connected. The Eagles eventually reached Lemon through his agent, Ian Grutman of GSE Worldwide.
The call went through just before the selection became official on the broadcast. Lemon ended his conversation with Khan and answered Philadelphia instead. What happened next explained why Roseman moved with such urgency.
Lemoncaught 79 passes for 1,156 yards and 11 touchdowns at USC in 2025. Over three college seasons, he recorded 137 catches for 2,008 yards in 33 games. PFF graded him 90.8 overall last season, whichranked fifth among 679 qualified receivers.
Pittsburgh selected Arizona State offensive tackle Max Iheanachor one pick later at No. 2. This marked the ninth time Roseman traded up in the first round since 2010. Six of thosemoves came within the last eight drafts alone.
DeVonta Smith, Jalen Carter, and Jordan Davis all arrived through similar trades. Each of those players played a direct role in Philadelphia’s Super Bowl LIX championship run.
“I think about the regret of not doing something,” Rosemansaid after the draft. That mindset left Pittsburgh without its top target and gave Philadelphia its newest weapon.