From The Sports Desk: Crossed signals

NFLFrom The Sports Desk: Crossed signalsThe NFL draft relies heavily on telephones, which can lead to some wild moments. Plus, NBA playoffs and Premier League soccer.Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00Makai Lemon of USC celebrates Thursday after being selected twentieth overall pick by the Philadelphia Eagles during the first round of the NFL Draft.Emilee Chinn / Getty ImagesShareAdd NBC News to GoogleApril 24, 2026, 3:01 PM EDTBy Tim Rohan, Rohan Nadkarni and Joe Prince-Wright, NBC SportsLast night, round 1 of the NFL draft was full of twists, turns and surprises. Our team recapped them all here. But the biggest one involved a phone call. Or technically, two phone calls. When one team thought they were drafting a player, only for another team to swoop in. We’ll explain.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.Plus, Rohan Nadkarni breaks down all the action from last night’s NBA playoffs, and Joe Prince-Wright previews this weekend’s Premier League slate. Jam-packed newsletter today and even more coverage, as always, on the NBC News website.NFL DraftIn recent years, a new tradition has been adopted at the NFL draft, especially in the first round. Teams will record them calling their draft pick, to capture the excitement in the room, and then release the video on social media.It’s supposed to be an easy promotion for the team. But on these phone calls, we’re learning, a lot can go wrong.Last night, the Dallas Cowboys were on the clock at pick No. 20 when Makai Lemon, a wide receiver from USC, received a call from the Pittsburgh Steelers, who held the No. 21 pick. Pittsburgh had apparently assumed the Cowboys weren’t taking him.Lemon’s phone kept ringing. He looked and it was the Philadelphia Eagles. They had traded with the Cowboys. The Eagles now owned the No. 20 pick and were taking Lemon.“I feel like everything happened for a reason,” Lemon said later. “They traded up, so it means a lot. T...