Eagles WR Makai Lemon continued to take advantage of injury absences at his position in Sunday's loss to the Giants. He led the team in targets (9), receptions (6), and receiving yards (61) as new starting QB Joe Milton threw for just 169 yards on 18-of-34 passing. It was Lemon's third straight game with at least 8 targets and 6 catches. WR teammates DeVonta Smith and Dontayvion Wicks missed all three of those contests with injuries. WR Darius Cooper followed Lemon with 8 targets against the Giants but managed just 2 catches.
What They're Saying
Lemon could've boosted his numbers further but dropped a couple of passes, including one on a short throw from Milton on the team's final possession.
He took responsibility after the game.
Makai Lemon wasn’t shy talking about how hard it should’ve been to catch his 2 dropped passes. “Make them in your sleep.” https://t.co/eThvwUgayq
— 97.5 The Fanatic (@975TheFanatic) November 8, 2026
2026 Fantasy Football Impact: Lead WR's Return Will Hurt
Lemon now has four games with 5+ catches this season. None of those came with Smith in the lineup. (The other before his past three outings came in the Week 5 London loss to Jacksonville.
Even including the games he has played without Smith, the rookie trails well behind his veteran teammate in target share, 32.3% to 19.3%.
So we can bet on a decline in target share once Smith returns. We'll see whether that follows the Week 10 bye. That would seem likely, given that the Eagles elected not to put Smith on IR for the hamstring injury that has cost him the past three games. But Smith remained out of practice last week, so his Week 11 return doesn't look guaranteed.
Lemon could remain in WR3 territory for fantasy lineups if Smith misses further time. He'll be pressed to climb beyond WR4 territory once Smith's back, though. And the weakness of Philadelphia's passing game makes even two WR4+ performers a shaky bet.
