This was one of the most anticipated rookie debuts for a Philadelphia Eagles player in a long time, since fans didn't have the first two preseason games to watch first-round pick Makai Lemon play.
There had been a ton of hype surrounding Lemon, especially after his great 2025 season with the USC Trojans. He won the Fred Biletnikoff Award and was a unanimous All-American selection, catching 79 passes for 1,156 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Over the last week at training camp, Lemon has been slowly showing how good he can be, catching a touchdown in the Eagles' open practice. When he stepped on the field for the [preseason finale against the Cincinnati Bengals](https://insidetheiggles.com/5-winners-and-3-losers-from-eagles-preseason-finale-loss-to-bengals), though, things didn't go well.
What should Eagles fans make of Makai Lemon's debut?
----------------------------------------------------
Lemon made a nice adjustment to an off target throw by Tanner McKee on the first play of the game for a three-yard completion. That would be the only noteworthy play of the night for Lemon, though.
He had a really bad drop that the Bengals intercepted, then muffed a punt return he recovered, but it went nowhere. Lemon finished with three receptions for three yards on five targets and had one punt return for zero yards in the [30-13 loss to Cincinnati](https://www.espn.com/nfl/boxscore/_/gameId/401873301).
Lemon opened up about his drop in the game and took accountability for it.
_**"It's a drop. It went through my hands. I got to catch it. Learn from it."**_
> Makai Lemon: "I was excited to get out there with the guys before the real season. ...It felt good."
>
> Lemon on the dropped INT: "It's a drop. It went through my hands. I got to catch it. Learn from it."