Jaxon Smith-Njigba's Stats, Metrics, Game Logs, Projections & Rankings

In his final dress rehearsal on Saturday, Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba showed why he was a first-round selection in the 2023 NFL Draft. Smith-Njigba finished with two receptions for 32 yards on the Seahawks' masterful opening drive against the Cleveland Browns. Smith-Njigba showed off his hands and body control on a contested catch up the right sideline for 25 yards. During his rookie season, Smith-Njigba recorded 63 receptions for 628 yards and four touchdowns. He is poised to take a second-year leap in this offense. What is most encouraging is that the Seahawks primarily deployed three wide receiver sets during their opening drive. This would allow Smith-Njigba to share the field with long-time stalwarts DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. With new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb coming over from the University of Washington and introducing more creativity, Smith-Njigba may be worth a shot at his current draft price of WR39.

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba has been showing off his chemistry with quarterback Geno Smith during joint practices with the Tennessee Titans. With Tyler Lockett (leg) missing time recently, Smith-Njigba has been thrust into a more prominent role, and he's not disappointing. There has been reported "obvious" chemistry between Smith and JSN, as Seattle's signal-caller has gotten more used to the second-year wideout's timing and tempo in his routes. "I just love the way JSN works," Smith said, "Jaxon is prepared every single day." It isn't just his teammates singing his praises, either. When asked about the former first-round pick, Titans head coach Brian Callahan called him "one of the better slots as a young player." It's a crowded WR room in Seattle, but the Ohio State product has an excellent chance to build off of his rookie year in 2024. JSN would garner breakout consideration if either Lockett or Metcalf missed any time. He's Yahoo!'s WR40 in ADP.

The Seattle Times' Mike Vorel writes that Seattle Seahawks second-year wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the team's X-factor on offense in 2024. Seattle partly drafted Smith-Njigba in the first round in 2023 to help them pile up big plays and dominate on third downs, two places where they really struggled last year. He had the second-most catches by a rookie (63) in franchise history, but the results were inconsistent, and he didn't find the end zone until the sixth game of the year. JSN also had three or fewer catches in seven games and never went over 63 receiving yards. The 22-year-old has been getting rave reviews from head coach Mike Macdonald in training camp, though, and he appears poised to benefit from fresh leadership in new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb's system. Smith-Njigba is still battling for targets behind DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, but he remains an intriguing WR4/flex option in fantasy that should improve in Year 2.

Seattle Seahawks second-year wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba is an obvious breakout candidate in his sophomore season despite being in a receiving corps that still has DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett and in an offense that figures to lean more on the running game than new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb did at the University of Washington. In his first year in the league in 2023, Smith-Njigba had 63 catches for 628 yards and four touchdowns in 17 games. No player stood out more than JSN during spring workouts and minicamp, although Metcalf and Lockett weren't always on the field with him. He was downright dominant at times, though, and head coach Mike Macdonald said "we're expecting big things out of him." The 22-year-old has his fantasy ceiling capped as long as Metcalf and Lockett are healthy, but fantasy managers still shouldn't mind rostering him as a WR4/flex.

Seattle Seahawks second-year wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (shoulder) left Wednesday's practice at mandatory minicamp with a shoulder issue, but head coach Mike MacDonald indicated it's not a serious injury. Receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. (toe) also left practice early after injuring his toe. It's possible that Smith-Njigba is held out for the rest of minicamp as a precaution, but the 22-year-old should be ready to rock at the end of July for the start of training camp. Despite being behind both DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett on the receiving depth chart in his rookie campaign in 2023, Smith-Njigba impressed with 63 receptions for 628 yards and four touchdowns in 17 games played. The former first-rounder didn't see much downfield work, though, and will face a second straight season as the WR3 in Seattle. Consider him a WR4/flex in fantasy with upside for more in Year 2.