Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Just two catches in debut
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Smith-Njigba caught both of his targets for 19 total yards in Sunday's 26-20 win over the Broncos.
It was an underwhelming performance for the second-year receiver, especially with Tyler Lockett catching six passes for 77 yards and DK Metcalf catching three passes for 29 yards. Still, it's encouraging that Smith-Njigba played 53 of 67 offensive snaps (79 percent) while Lockett played just 26 snaps (54 percent). That bodes well for his long-term outlook, but he may have a tough Week 2 matchup on tap against a Patriots team that just held Joe Burrow to 164 passing yards.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Sleeper WRs
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I still like Smith-Njigba as a potential No. 3 Fantasy receiver in all leagues even though Tyler Lockett (thigh) will play in Week 1 against Denver. Smith-Njigba will likely avoid facing top cornerback Patrick Surtain II for most of the game -- be a little wary of DK Metcalf this week -- so Smith-Njigba should be a go-to option for Geno Smith in Ryan Grubb's new offense. Coach Mike Macdonald said this offseason that Smith-Njigba will be "a massive piece" of the offense, and hopefully that starts in Week 1.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Pair of catches in preseason finale
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Smith-Njigba brought in both his targets for 32 yards in the Seahawks' 37-33 preseason win over the Browns on Saturday night.
Smith-Njigba was out there with DK Metcalf as the starting wideout duo for Geno Smith on Seattle's opening possession, and the former made good use of his opportunity. Smith-Njigba was the target on Smith's first completion, which resulted in a 25-yard gain down the right side of the field. The 2023 first-round pick added a seven-yard grab later in the drive, and he projects to open the regular season as the No. 3 receiver behind Metcalf and Tyler Lockett (leg). However, he could very well improve that standing as the campaign unfolds.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Two catches in preseason opener
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Smith-Njigba brought in both targets for 13 yards in the Seahawks' 16-3 preseason win over the Chargers on Saturday night.
The second-year wideout operated as the de facto No. 1 receiver for spot starter Sam Howell due to Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf both being held out. Both of Smith-Njigba's catches came on the Seahawks' third possession, and looking ahead to the 2024 regular season, the 2023 first-round pick could make a serious push to overtake Lockett for No. 2 receiver duties after posting a solid 63-628-4 line across 17 regular-season games as a rookie.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Back at practice
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Smith-Njigba (shoulder) participated in Wednesday's practice, Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic reports.
Smith-Njigba made multiple contested catches during practice, including a 50-yard toss from Geno Smith, showing he is past the shoulder injury that forced him from OTAs in June. Dugar projects that Smith-Njigba will take the next step in the offense this season and challenge defenses at every level, something we rarely saw in 2023 when he was mainly used as an underneath target. Still, his exact role is to be determined, as commanding targets away from DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett is a tall task.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Exits practice with shoulder injury
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Smith-Njigba left Wednesday's practice early with a shoulder injury that coach Mike Macdonald doesn't consider serious, Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times reports.
Macdonald canceled the last day of minicamp (Thursday) to reward his players for a good offseason, so Smith-Njigba's next opportunity to practice will be at the start of training camp in late July. It sounds like the Seahawks expect him to be healthy before then, but we may not have confirmation for a while with players and teams going their separate ways during the league's summer break.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Notches TD on only catch Sunday
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Smith-Njigba gathered in one of two passes for 12 yards and one touchdown during Sunday's 30-23 loss to the Steelers.
The target count matched Smith-Njigba's second fewest in a game on the season, but he reached the end zone from 12 yards out to salvage his Week 17. Meanwhile, all of WRs DK Metcalf (eight) and Tyler Lockett (five), TE Noah Fant (six) and RB Zach Charbonnet (five) were targeted on at least five occasions. Smith-Njigba will aim to get back on track Week 18 on the road against a Cardinals defense that has given up the fifth-most yards per target (8.9) to opposing wide receivers on the campaign.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Full practice Thursday
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Smith-Njigba (knee) practiced fully Thursday, Curtis Crabtree of Fox 13 Seattle reports.
After a knee injury resulted in Smith-Njigba being limited at Wednesday's walkthrough, the rookie wide receiver was able to handle every practice rep one day later, paving the way for him to suit up Sunday against the Steelers. The same can be said for undrafted rookie WR Jake Bobo (knee), while Dee Eskridge (ribs) didn't practice again Thursday and DK Metcalf (back) was added to the Seahawks' injury report as a DNP. There's no indication yet that Metcalf may be in danger of sitting out this weekend, but if he's inhibited or inactive, Smith-Njigba would be in line for a bigger workload alongside Tyler Lockett.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Dealing with knee concern
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Smith-Njigba was limited at Wednesday's walkthrough due to a knee injury, John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site reports.
Smith-Njigba consistently has earned a snap share of at least 60 percent per game since the Seahawks' Week 5 bye, recording a 47-540-3 receiving line on 66 targets over the last 11 contests. The rookie first-round pick has yet to break through with the first signature performance of his career, though, which isn't a shock on a team that stresses the run game and also features veteran wide receivers DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. Smith-Njigba will now have to work his way past a health concern in order to suit up Sunday versus the Steelers.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Hauls in six passes Sunday
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Smith-Njigba recorded six catches (on seven targets) for 61 yards during Sunday's 20-17 win at Tennessee.
Smith-Njigba welcomed back Geno Smith (groin) to the lineup after the quarterback missed the previous two games. While Smith-Njigba's output wasn't out of the realm of previous games during his rookie campaign, he surpassed 60 yards receiving for the fourth time in 15 contests and was only three yards shy of setting a new career high. As long as DK Metcalf (4-56-1 on six targets Sunday) and Tyler Lockett (8-81-0 on 11 targets) are healthy, Smith-Njigba will continue to play third fiddle, at best, in the Seahawks' passing game. Smith-Njigba's next chance to produce arrives Sunday, Dec. 31 against the Steelers.
Smith-Njigba caught all four of his targets for 48 yards and a touchdown in Monday's 20-17 win over Philadelphia.
Smith-Njigba played the role of hero for Seattle when he caught the game-winning touchdown with just seconds left in Monday's narrow victory. The rookie wideout had just three catches on three targets for 19 yards prior to scoring in the closing moments, so his role remains small despite producing a solid fantasy line in the win. Smith-Njigba should continue offering deep-league value when the Seahawks take on the Titans in Week 16.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Catches four passes
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Smith-Njigba caught four of seven targets for 25 yards in Sunday's 28-16 loss to the 49ers.
Smith-Njigba looked like he was starting to heat up ahead of Week 14. However, Drew Lock got the starting nod in place of Geno Smith (groin), and Smith-Njigba only caught short passes as a result. Smith-Njigba's longest catch of the day was for 11 yards against this fierce divisional foe. He'll continue to work as the No. 3 wideout in this rotation, but the rookie's upside has been limited all year. He has yet to surpass 63 receiving yards in a game, and he hasn't scored a touchdown since Week 8.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Finishes third in receiving yards
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Smith-Njigba had three receptions on six targets for 40 yards in Sunday's 17-16 loss to the Rams.
Smith-Njigba would have had a fourth reception for 22 additional yards had the Rams not challenged the wideout's diving attempt in the first quarter and had the call correctly changed to an incompletion. Still, it was another solid outing from Seattle's slot receiver, who is averaging four receptions and 50.5 yards in six games since the team's bye in Week 5. Smith-Njigba should continue providing consistent value to managers in deeper leagues when the Seahawks host the 49ers for Thursday Night Football in Week 12.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Sleeper WRs
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Smith-Njigba cooled off in Week 10 against Washington with only four catches for 53 yards on five targets. Prior to that, he scored at least 12.3 PPR points in three games in a row, and I hope he gets back to that level in Week 11 against the Rams. DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett are still the top two Fantasy receivers for the Seahawks, and both are dominating targets, which makes sense. But Smith-Njigba can still be a serviceable No. 3 Fantasy receiver in this matchup. The Rams have allowed four receivers to score at least 12.9 PPR points in their past three games.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Reels in four passes
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Smith-Njigba caught four of five targets for 53 yards in Sunday's 29-26 win over the Commanders.
After a slow start to the season, Smith-Njigba has been consistent over the past five weeks, averaging 52.6 receiving yards per game and totaling two touchdowns. The rookie first-round pick still hasn't put forth a true breakout performance -- 63 yards is his season high -- but it's encouraging that he's a steady part of the offense. The Seahawks will face the Rams' young secondary in Week 11, so Smith-Njigba will have a favorable matchup even if he's still the No. 3 receiving option behind DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Full practice Thursday
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Smith-Njigba (hip) was a full practice participant Thursday, John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site reports.
Smith-Njigba was held out of drills Wednesday due to a hip concern, but his ability to handle every rep one day later indicates he's good to go for Week 10 action. He'll be facing a Commanders defense on Sunday that has given up the second-most touchdowns (13) and most yards per catch (9.9) to opposing wide receivers in nine games this season.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Dealing with hip issue
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Smith-Njigba was a non-participant at Wednesday's practice due to a hip injury, John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site reports.
Since tending to a slight fracture in his wrist late in the preseason, Smith-Njigba has avoided the injury bug en route to a collective 29-272-2 receiving line on 43 targets in eight games to begin his career. Most of that production (17-210-2 on 23 targets) has come over the last four contests, but the rookie first-round draft pick now is dealing with a new health concern as Seattle prepares to host the Commanders on Sunday. As a result, Smith-Njigba's status should be watched as the week goes on to ensure his status for Week 10 isn't in any danger.
Smith-Njigba recorded six receptions on seven targets for 63 yards in Sunday's 37-3 loss to Baltimore.
The majority of Smith-Njigba's production came with the game out of reach, though he now has at least 60 receiving yards in two of his last three contests to go along with two scores. The highlight of his performance Sunday came on a 35-yard catch deep down the right sideline on the first play of the fourth quarter. Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf will almost certainly be the top pass catchers in the Seattle offense moving forward, but Smith-Njigba is showing signs of a breakout with his recent performances.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Week 10 Early Waiver Targets (Add/Drop)
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We haven't seen the true breakout showing yet, but I think Smith-Njigba continues to point in the right direction. He caught six of seven targets for 63 yards Sunday against the Ravens, and while that certainly wasn't a big game by any means, it looks a lot better when you compare it to what the rest of the team did: DK Metcalf had just one catch for 50 yards, while Tyler Lockett turned his team-high eight targets into three catches for 32 yards. Lockett just hasn't quite looked like himself this season, while Metcalf has been even more hit-or-miss than ever, and may not be 100% due to a couple of nagging injuries. The Seahawks need Geno Smith to start playing better to have any chance of living up to expectations, but if he does, Smith-Njigba seems well positioned to take off in the second half of the season. I still want him on my roster.
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Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Week 9 Early Waiver Targets (Add/Drop)
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Smith-Njigba took a step back with DK Metcalf back from his one-game absence, but he kept producing, and that's what we want to see from a younger player. Smith-Njigba is an incredibly talented receiver stuck in a very crowded receiving group, with a QB who has taken a step backward from his impressive 2022 season, which had led to a disappointing start to his career. However, Smith-Njigba is starting to make plays more consistently, with a touchdown in consecutive games, and should continue to see his role increase as the season goes on. Like Dotson, you probably can't be super optimistic about using Smith-Njigba in Week 9, but I want him on my bench if I can make room.