Top NFL Draft Prospect Compared to Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown

Several wide receivers are projected to go in Round 1 of the 2026 NFL draft, and USC's Makai Lemon is one of them.

Lemon, a unanimous All-American and Fred Biletnikoff Award winner, was one of the top receivers in the country last season. He ranked eighth in the country in receiving yards (1,156), ninth in touchdowns (11), and 11th in receptions (79) - and now he's projected to go somewhere in the first 20 picks of the draft.

Though he's a bit undersized at 5-foot-11 and 195 pounds, Lemon has drawn about as good of an NFL comparison as one could get.

"Not sure there’s been a prospect compared more to a current play than Makai Lemon has been to Amon-Ra St. Brown," Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports recently wrote. "Any acquiring team would love to get one of the best receivers in the NFL in any draft, but those are lofty expectations for Lemon to live up to.

"… People will point to his body not being as solid as someone like St. Brown and he’s only 5-11. But he had the best production out of the top receivers in this year’s draft and some teams think he has some versatility outside of the slot."

St. Brown is roughly the same size (he's 6-foot and 202 pounds), though that didn't deter him one he reached the pros.

He had a standout rookie year, logging 90 receptions, 912 yards, and five touchdowns. He followed it up with four straight 1,000-yard seasons and 39 total touchdowns over that span.

If Lemon has that kind of potential, whichever team drafts him will have hit a home run with its first-rounder.

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This story was originally published April 18, 2026 at 7:49 PM.