The 2026 NFL Draft is fast approaching, and it’s time to start diving into the top prospects. The Rookies to Know series aims to identify first-year players who have the talent and potential to make an impact for your fantasy football teams in 2026. Plenty of rookies proved to be relevant during the 2025 fantasy football season, and we’ll do our best to find the first-year players in this upcoming draft who can help your fantasy teams this fall.
It’s important to remember that when it comes to rookies, they often provide pockets of value, meaning they may give your fantasy team a boost for a particular stretch of the season, but maybe not for the duration of the year. Patience can be difficult when managing rookies on your re-draft rosters, but it can pay huge dividends. Just look at Bears Tight End Colston Loveland. He had a slow start to his rookie year, but by the fantasy playoffs, his role increased, culminating in a 21.4 point PPR performance in Week 17 when fantasy championships were on the line. That’s just one example, but it shows how important rookies can be in redraft and best ball leagues. They may not carry your team from Weeks 1-17, but a few spike weeks from a rookie could put your team in a better position to make the playoffs or even win a championship.
This year, the Rookies to Know articles will attempt to be as easily digestible as possible. We’ll start with a background on the player, followed by strengths, weaknesses, and finish up with one or two ideal and realistic landing spots. The goal is to know how the player’s strengths can translate to fantasy production as a rookie, and where they can improve in order for them to reach their ceiling as a fantasy asset.
Next up is another receiver who is often compared to one of the most productive wideouts we have currently in fantasy football.
Makai Lemon, Wide Receiver, USC
Hometown: Los Alamitos, California
Combine measurements:
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 192 lbs.
Arm length: 30 1/2″
Hand size: 8 3/4″
40-yard dash at Pro Day: 4.5 seconds
Background:
Lemon was no dark-horse prospect coming out of high school, as he racked up over 3,600 receiving yards and 41 touchdowns between his time at La Miranda and Los Alamitos high schools. The California native was one of USC’s star prospects from the 2023 class and brought with him a five-star ESPN rating. The 21-year-old broke out as a sophomore at USC, leading the team with 52 receptions, 764 yards, and four touchdowns. 2025 left no doubt that Lemon should be one of the top receivers drafted, as he took off for 79 receptions, 1,156 receiving yards, and 11 touchdowns, capping off his college career with the Biletnikoff Award (nation’s most outstanding WR). Lemon is a simple Southern California guy who enjoys some time at the beach when away from football (can’t argue that).
Strengths:
- Exceptional in contested catch situations despite his smaller size (66.7% contested catch rate in 2025 according to PFF), as seen here around the 1:00 mark in this quick film breakdown by NBC’s Connor Rodgers
- Extremely reliable hands; only dropped three balls among 175 targets over the past two seasons
- Understands how to find the soft spots in zone coverage to be able to get open
- Manipulates defenders with deception and sharp route running; check out how he dips his hips on this route to create separation around the 9:50 mark
- Played a tough strength of schedule (a strength of schedule of 96 on a scale from 50-100 according to Fantasy Life’s Dwain McFarland) and was still highly productive
- Caught 25 passes of balls thrown at least 20 yards downfield, according to Ian Hartitz of Fantasy Life, showing Lemon can be utilized down the field and not just on short, quick passes; he actually has more 20-plus yard targets than Carnell Tate or Jordyn Tyson, according to McFarland
- Going along with that, Lemon was targeted in all areas of the field at USC and shouldn’t be pigeon-holed as a slot-only player that can only earn targets on shorter routes
- Averaged 6.6 yards after catch, which is +1.4 yards over expected when adjusting for his aDOT (average depth of target), based on McFarland’s rookie super model
- Career 3.00+ yards per route run against both man and zone coverage (since 2021, the only other receivers to post those numbers are Ja’Marr Chase, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, DeVonta Smith, Jaylen Waddle, and D’Wayne Eskridge, according to Todd McShay; that’s some seriously good company
Weaknesses:
- Can improve in press coverage against physical corners
- Doesn’t possess elite breakaway speed
- At times struggles with rushing through routes that require a double move; more patience needed to effectively deceive defenders with the double move
- His press conference at the NFL Combine sparked some concern with his demeanor, but judging a guy based on one interview isn’t fair; this interview he did with NBC’s Pro Football Talk at the combine showed another side of Lemon that maybe wasn’t brought out during the viral press conference clips
Bottom line:
If you’ve spent any time looking into Lemon, you know that the popular pro comp for him is Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, just ask Lemon himself. With their similar size, intensity on the field, precision with their route running, and production, the comp makes sense. The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman noted both are savvy and quicker than fast, while both also won the Biletnikoff Awards in their final college seasons. The size and speed won’t jump off the page, bringing up the question up if Lemon profiles as a slot-only player. Lemon had the highest PFF receiving grade on deep targets (20+ yards) among all receivers in FBS last season, according to the NFL Researcher on X. Sure, that doesn’t mean he’ll automatically be as productive on deep routes in the NFL, but it does show he has plenty of ability to make plays deep down the field and has the potential to be a versatile weapon for an NFL offense. At worst, you’re getting a great route-running slot receiver who won’t drop passes and can contribute right away. At best, whoever drafts him is getting a receiver who can line up all over the field and has an All-Pro ceiling. He’s one of the safer prospects in this draft.
Ideal fantasy landing spot (s):
With the lack of ideal size and speed for Lemon, it’s hard to have a good feel for when his draft range begins. The Saints with the 8th pick is an intriguing option, however, for many of the same reasons I listed them as a good landing spot for Arizona State WR Jordyn Tyson. New Orleans needs more reliable receivers behind Chris Olave, and they should prioritize putting weapons around young quarterback Tyler Shough. They’ve invested in the offensive line over the past few years, and Lemon would be a good complement to Olave in the receiver room. Plenty of target opportunities would exist in this offense for Lemon. The 8th pick might be too rich for Lemon, but it would be an opportunity for him to make an impact right away.
Initially, I thought about the Dolphins, who hold the 11th and 30th overall picks, as a possible option. I shut it down, but after thinking about it more, there are some reasons to think of Miami as a decent option. With Jaylen Waddle being traded to the Broncos, the target opportunities are endless. The Dolphins project as one of the worst, if not the worst, teams heading into 2026 and should be trailing often. Lemon could end up being the next great fantasy receiver who gobbles up targets on a bad team that’s forced to throw all over the yard just to try to keep up. We’re trying to find places where Lemon can put up numbers as a rookie, and there’s no question that he would have the opportunity to do so with the Dolphins. 11th might be a bit high for him, but 30th should be his floor. Miami also has plenty of picks (including four 3rd-round picks) if they wanted to trade up a few spots into the 20s for Lemon, which is probably his sweet spot to be selected.
Photo by Brian Murphy/Icon Sportswire | Featured image by Ethan Kaplan (@djfreddie10.bsky.social on Blue Sky and @EthanMKaplanImages on Instagram)