Eagles underrated – With AJ Brown traded away and Jaelan Phillips leaving in free agency, the Philadelphia Eagles are still loaded with talent—but a few mid-level names could become the jump in 2026. Makai Lemon has the targets to seize a star role, Jalyx Hunt is already producin
Philadelphia didn’t just build a roster—it stocked a future. Even after trading away AJ Brown and allowing Jaelan Phillips to leave in free agency. the Eagles still have 12 players making at least $10 million a year in AAV. and more are lined up for premier market value contracts such as Cooper DeJean. Quinyon Mitchell. and Jalen Carter.
But star power doesn’t automatically turn into offense or defense that keeps humming in January. It turns into moments—sometimes from the players you don’t talk about on highlight reels. In 2026, Philadelphia will need fresh production, and three names stand out as under-the-radar breakouts.
Makai Lemon isn’t flying under the radar because he’s unknown. He’s flying under it because he hasn’t done the NFL proving yet.
Lemon is 5-foot-11 and 192 pounds. and he’s the first wide receiver Howie Roseman has taken in the first round since DeVonta Smith. He arrived from USC. won the Biletnikoff Award for a 79-catch. 1. 156-yard season. and has already drawn early hype from Amon-Ra St. Brown, who has consistently been gassing him up heading into the NFL.
There’s a reason the leap still matters. Until Lemon produces at the NFL level, he’s firmly in the “star-in-the-making” category rather than an “instant-everything” answer.
The physical details add to the debate. MockDraftables lists Lemon as a sub-20th percentile in hand size. arm length. and wingspan. and he didn’t run the 40-yard dash out of USC—though the article notes that it’s still safe to assume he wouldn’t have been a 4.3 burner based on his tape and general style of player.
What makes Lemon feel like a real breakout candidate is the math around opportunity. With 157 targets freed up by the exits of Brown and WR3 Jahan Dotson. plus additional attempts-per-game that are described as borderline guaranteed thanks to the addition of Sean Mannion. the argument is simple: if Lemon gets at least 75 balls thrown his way. a 1. 000-yard season and a serious Rookie of the Year conversation should be in play by season’s end.
If Lemon is waiting for the volume to become real, Jalyx Hunt is already producing the kind of plays that change games.
Hunt’s path started as an interesting depth piece as a rookie. then shifted into something far more concrete during the 2025 calendar year as he became a certified rotational player. Now he has a chance to become the Eagles’ top homegrown edge rusher as he and Nolan Smith duke it out for a long-term extension next offseason.
The case starts with the numbers Philadelphia needed. When the Eagles were looking for a really big defensive play in 2025. Hunt more often than not was the one showing up. He led the team with 6.5 sacks. He also paced Philadelphia in QB hits, recording 24—twice as many as the team’s next top performer, Jalen Carter. And on the ball itself. Hunt forced fumbles at a key pace: he had two. and recovered one. with those plays leading to the team’s momentum.
The stat line keeps getting stranger in the best way. Hunt led the Eagles in interceptions with three, beating DeJean, Zack Baun, and Andrew Mukuba, despite only playing 62 percent of the team’s defensive snaps.
Philadelphia did add another starting edge rusher during the draft in Jonathan Greenard. but the feeling here is that Hunt isn’t being replaced—he’s being positioned. If he keeps putting up those kinds of “sack one play. pick him off the next” production with even more impressive talent around him. it will be hard for Roseman not to give him a big-money extension. An edge rusher who can impact games in multiple ways is exactly the kind of premium asset the Eagles typically don’t let slip.
Jihaad Campbell completes the trio, and his story is about timing and fit.
Campbell arrived as a rookie who flashed while splitting time on the inside with Nakobe Dean and also moving out of position as an edge rusher. Now he’s wearing the new No. 11 and has a clear runway to become the Eagles’ full-time starter next to Zack Baun.
Roseman didn’t take Campbell lightly. He was described as a widely considered steal of the 2025 NFL Draft, and Roseman traded up to secure him. Philadelphia selected him 31st overall, with the pick originally belonging to the Kansas City Chiefs—the team the Eagles beat in the Super Bowl.
Campbell is 6-foot-3 and 235 pounds, and his athletic testing came with real numbers. He ran a 4.52 40 at Alabama and posted a 1.53 10-yard split and a 10-foot-7 inch broad jump at the 2026 NFL Draft Combine.
The background matters because it explains why his ceiling isn’t being questioned. A top-15 college recruit who was persuaded to pick Alabama by Nick Saban himself. Campbell was an absolute force in the SEC. In his two years as a starter at inside linebacker in Tuscaloosa. he produced 184 tackles. 15.5 tackles for loss. 5.5 sacks. and a pair of interceptions.
As a rookie. he played well—especially in coverage—showing the speed needed to keep up with running backs and even an occasional slot receiver. But when Dean returned to full strength, Campbell’s playing time dried up. Dean played with more confidence in the run game, routinely picking up tackles for loss against opposing RBs. And after both Campbell and Baun failed to get much done while moonlighting on the edge. Dean became the odd man out.
Now the picture changes. With Dean a member of the Las Vegas Raiders, Campbell has a chance to start on the inside right away. The article describes what that could look like next to Baun: a mirrored look on either side of the defensive tackles that can drop into man coverage. remain in zone. or rush the passer from a standup alignment from anywhere across the front.
When Roseman traded up in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the move was framed as a bet on Campbell’s fit in Vic Fangio’s defense. After a quiet rookie season, the runway for that investment to pay off is what gives 2026 real bite.
Taken together. the Eagles’ offseason losses—AJ Brown traded away and Jaelan Phillips leaving in free agency—don’t erase what’s already there. Instead, they sharpen the need for production from players deeper on the roster. Lemon is built for the moment targets open up. Hunt is already proving he can flip a game with sacks, QB hits, forced fumbles, and interceptions. Campbell is ready for the full-time job after the inside picture shifted.
Philadelphia still has star contracts on the way, and a roster filled with $10 million-plus AAV players. But when the Eagles need fresh blood to carry momentum into 2026, these three are the names most likely to turn opportunity into household status.
Philadelphia Eagles 2026 NFL season Makai Lemon Jalyx Hunt Jihaad Campbell Nick Sirianni Howie Roseman Nolan Smith Cooper DeJean Quinyon Mitchell Jalen Carter AJ Brown Jaelan Phillips