Three Eagles rookies secure invites to the 2026 NFLPA Rookie Premiere
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Three Eagles rookies secure invites to the 2026 NFLPA Rookie Premiere originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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The Philadelphia Eagles came out of the 2026 NFL Draft with an offensive infusion. Wide receiver Makai Lemon, tight end Eli Stowers, and quarterback Cole Payton are all on the invite list for the NFLPA Rookie Premiere in Los Angeles this May.
Lemon won the Biletnikoff Award and now gets his next platform
Lemon was the centerpiece. The Eagles traded up three spots, shipping picks No. 23, 114, and 137 to Dallas to land him at No. 20 overall. He comes out of USC with 1,156 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns last season, earning unanimous All-American honors in the process.
The list of players invited to attend this year’s NFL Players Rookie Premiere in LA May 14-17. pic.twitter.com/Nz2VIPksfr
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) April 30, 2026
Stowers adds a different kind of credibility to this class. He won the Mackey Award at Vanderbilt as the nation's top tight end before going 54th overall to Philadelphia.
His PFF receiving grade of 85.3 and 45.5-inch vertical made him one of the more physically gifted pass-catchers in this draft regardless of position. The Eagles drafted him to replace what Dallas Goedert provided at his best.
Payton rounds out the group at 178th overall from North Dakota State, where he threw for 2,719 yards and 16 touchdowns while also rushing for 777 yards and 13 scores.
He is a dual-threat developmental piece behind Jalen Hurts with a long timeline to playing time. But the NFLPA flagging him for the Rookie Premiere means his profile already extends beyond a depth chart footnote.