USC's Makai Lemon Declares for 2026 NFL Draft, What Are WR's Top Landing Spots?

One of the best wide receivers in college football is NFL bound.

USC's Makai Lemon, the 2025 Biletnikoff winner, declared for the draft on Wednesday.

Bleacher Report's NFL Scouting Department lists Lemon as the No. 23 overall player and the No. 4 receiver in this year's draft class. The junior recorded 1,156 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns for USC this season.

As far as draft positioning goes, Lemon should be a relatively early draft pick, perhaps in the late first round or early second round. There are plenty of teams in need of a wide receiver that will be willing to take him around then.

One such team could be the Buffalo Bills. While the Bills have found plenty of success this season, they've done so without having a true No. 1 option at wide receiver. Khalil Shakir leads the team in receiving yards, but he would be the second or third option on most other NFL teams.

Buffalo used an early second-round pick on Keon Coleman in 2024, but he hasn't done much yet. At this point, it's worth taking a chance on another receiver in the early rounds.

Another team in need of a receiver is the New Orleans Saints. The Saints will get an early pick this year thanks to their rough record, so they might take a receiver in the first round. New Orleans could instead address another need with its early pick and take Lemon or another receiver in the first round.

The Atlanta Falcons have a WR1 in Drake London, but could use a secondary option to him. That could make the Falcons a prime candidate to select Lemon late in the first round.