USC Receiver Makai Lemon to Participate in Position Drills at the NFL Combine

The NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis is a spectacle that has continued to grow every year. Players see their draft stocks rise and fall based on what they do in shorts and a t-shirt in front decision-makers from all 32 teams.

Wide receivers will take the field on Saturday, Feb. 28, which means teams are going to get their first look at USC Trojans Biletnikoff Award winner Makai Lemon during this draft process. Lemon is going to participate in position drills at the combine.

How Makai Lemon Could Improve His Stock at the Combine

USC Trojans Mock NFL Draft Makai Lemon Scouting Combine Drills Position Carnell Tate Jordyn Tyson Ohio State Buckeyes Big Ten — Jul 24, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; USC wide receiver Makai Lemon speaks to the media during the Big Ten NCAA college football media days at Mandalay Bay Resort. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images | Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images

Lemon is competing with the likes of Ohio State’s Carnell Tate and Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson to be the first receiver off the board and no better place to do it than Lucas Oil Stadium.

From watching Lemon run routes up close during fall camp, it’s more than impressive. It was easy see why college football had no answer for the Trojans star receiver. And the combine is the same thing.

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"The type of player you are in practice, that's going to translate to the games on Saturday, and he was just so consistent with how he did everything,” said USC inside receivers/tight ends coach Chad Savage. “I think that's why he's going to get his name called pretty early in the draft.”

Lemon is an explosive and craft route runner with a natural pair of hands. He has tremendous concentration making tough catches and footwork along the sideline. All of that can show up with drills such as the gauntlet, the sideline toe-tap, over-the-shoulder and just regular route running drills.

Makai Lemon’s NFL Draft Projection

Mock drafts will certainly shift after the combine but as of now, the NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah, ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. and Fox Sports’ Joel Klatt all have Lemon being drafted at No. 8 overall by the New Orleans Saints.

The Saints are in need of another receiver to compliment Chris Olave, after they traded Rashid Shaheed to the Seattle Seahawks at the trade deadline. Quarterback Tyler Shough had some very bright moments down the stretch. Giving him another elite receiver such as Lemon would give the Saints a real opportunity to see what they really have in Shough.

There are a few teams ahead of the Saints that are in the market for a receiver. The Tennessee Titans own the No. 4 pick and need to get quarterback Cam Ward, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 draft, some help. But they are a roster that needs to upgrade its entire roster, and it’s a deep receiver class. New head coach Robert Saleh is a defensive guy, and it’s an incredibly talented edge rusher draft, or they could be in position to take Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese.

The New York Giants at No. 5 would like to get another receiver to play opposite of Malik Nabers, who they drafted No. 6 overall in 2024 and is coming off an ACL injury. Do the Giants prioritize getting quarterback Jaxson Dart, their first-round pick in 2025, another pass-catcher or protecting him.

Ohio State safety Caleb Downs could also be tempting because new coach John Harbaugh has seen firsthand the impact of an elite player at that position after having Kyle Hamilton for a number of years with the Baltimore Ravens.

And regardless of its Shedeur Sanders or someone else playing quarterback for the Cleveland Browns in 2026, they definitely need to find some productive receivers. They could use that No. 6 pick to find one. A strong performance from Lemon at the combine, to pair with what he shows on film, could make it hard for those teams to pass on him at the top of draft.

If Lemon does manage to fall out of the top 10, two teams that could target the USC receiver are the Los Angeles Rams at No. 13 and the Ravens at No. 14.