Day 1 of the 2026 NFL Draft was filled with entertainment; however, none was as entertaining as when Makai Lemon thought the Pittsburgh Steelers were drafting him. The wide receiver had a rollercoaster experience from the moment the phone rang to when the Philadelphia Eagles ultimately selected him, and the NFL community had plenty to say.
NFL Figures Weigh In on Steelers’ Draft Blunder With Makai Lemon
What went down on Day 1 of the draft was unlike anything fans have seen. The Steelers, who picked 21st, called Lemon while the Dallas Cowboys, who picked 20th, were on the clock. Convinced that Dallas won’t draft Lemon, Steelers general manager Omar Khan wanted to talk to Lemon even before the team was on the clock.
However, the witty move backfired big time, as Philly swooped in like an eagle by trading up with the Cowboys and snatching Lemon before Pittsburgh could get a chance.
What played out on camera was a confusing moment for the USC wideout.
Here is the moment Makai Lemon thought he was getting drafted by #Steelers and realizing in real time that the #Eagles traded up, via @gmfb this morning.
He asked Omar Khan “Why is Philly calling [me]?” pic.twitter.com/AbXDJONYye
— Ross McCorkle (@Ross_McCorkle) April 24, 2026
Prominent NFL figures reacted in their hoards.
“Here it is,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport posted. “What a wild ride.”
“Lol what are the Steelers doing?” Eagles writer Jimmy Kempski tweeted. “What’s the rush? Wait until you’re in the clock!”
Pittsburgh ended up drafting Arizona State offensive tackle Max Iheanachor, who had an impact score of 85.4 on PFSN’s CFB OL Impact Metric to shore up the O-Line, which should benefit quarterback Aaron Rodgers if he decides to return for 2026.
“Boy this is embarrassing for the Steelers FO,” CBS Sports’ JP Acosta wrote. “I still think Iheanachor could be a good player for them but yeesh.”
Literally what do the Steelers gain by calling a player before they’re on the clock? https://t.co/wJpMMPRyrD
— Jake Rabadi (@JakeRabadi) April 24, 2026
No matter how you look at it, this moment might very well haunt the franchise in the form of memes and jokes for quite a while.
“The moment I couldn’t stop thinking about last night while drifting off to sleep,” NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo posted. “This has happened to prospects before. But usually on Day 3 when the clock is tight and teams start calling a few picks ahead. Round 1? Maybe it’s happened before but I can’t recall it.”
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“Not sure I can recall a team getting brutalized this badly at the draft in recent memory,” Steelers Now’s Alan Saunders wrote. “And it happened in their own city in front of hundreds of thousands of their own fans.”
While the Steelers might be the league’s laughing stock for a while, it’ll be interesting to see what they get out of their new offensive tackle.
