With consecutive division victories over the San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals, the Seattle Seahawks suddenly find themselves atop the NFC West. This is quite the turn of events after losing five of their previous six games before their bye week, but the bottom line stands—they are in a tremendous spot to win the division.
The key to this success? A prolific passing attack has certainly helped. Every team needs to have a unique characteristic that makes them a dangerous threat come playoff time, and Seattle’s is obvious; they are averaging the second-most passing yards per game. While we have seen quarterback Geno Smith develop a strong downfield connection with D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett since taking over for Russell Wilson under center, there is a new dynamic that has taken this offense to new heights.
When the Seahawks made Jaxon Smith-Njigba the highest-drafted wide receiver in the 2023 NFL Draft, they demonstrated the ultimate conviction in his abilities. After all, they did not have an immediate need at the position and also had their choice of any wide receiver available. Yet, they felt Smith-Njigba was a player they could not afford to pass up.
As anticipated, the results did not show up immediately for Smith-Njigba as a rookie. However, as the season transpired, he continued to take on a larger role, leading to our own Justin Melo labeling him as Seattle’s breakout player for 2024. The reasons for such were clear. In addition to being a highly-regarded prospect who showed improvement during his rookie campaign, Smith-Njigba would also have the luxury of working with a new coaching staff. Furthermore, Lockett was about to turn 32 years old in September and is likely to be a cap casualty following this season, giving the Seahawks even more incentive to make Smith-Njigba a highly prioritized part of their offense.
Well, we are now 11 games into Smith-Njigba’s sophomore season, and it is fair to say that he has fully integrated himself into Seattle’s offense:
Metcalf outpaces Smith-Njigba in yards accumulated per game due to his team-leading 15.1 yards per reception, but the latter has been relied upon just as frequently. We were wondering if Smith-Njigba would be able to outpace Lockett this season, yet he has simply moved a step further to establish himself as potentially the co-WR1 in Seattle.
The highlight of Smith-Njigba’s season, save for an impressive 117-yard performance in Week 2, has come during the Seahawks’ past three games. Facing off against each of the team’s division opponents, he has truly taken off:
Keep in mind that while the first game occurred when Metcalf was not playing due to a knee injury, he has played in the last two contests. During these two games, Smith-Njigba still has the advantage on him in targets (18 vs. 14) and receiving yards (187 vs. 129). While a small sample size, this is not a development that we saw prior to this stretch, and thus it certainly is noteworthy.
While Metcalf and Lockett are at their best working down the field, Smith-Njigba offers a very important trait for Seattle’s passing attack—route diversity. He can win at all levels of the field, and offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb is embracing that. Simply take a look at his route charts from his recent performances against Los Angeles and Arizona.
While he can also make plays as a vertical receiver, Smith-Njigba has been utilized as a zone-beater across the middle of the field and has also been an entrusted weapon on screen plays as well. He leads all Seahawks wide receivers in both yards after catch per reception (5.1) and first downs (38), which makes sense; when reliability takes precedence over explosiveness, he is who is called upon. Of course, because of his skills after the catch, explosive plays have not been a problem either.
All told, Smith-Njigba ranks in the top 10 among wide receivers in receiving yards (7th), receptions (7th), and first downs (T-6th). Mind you, that includes his whole season; he was not a consistent focal point of the offense during the beginning of the season. As he has had a chance to settle in at the NFL level and into Grubb’s offense, nevertheless, the results have followed suit.
He may not have the pedigree and name recognition that other players on the Seahawks' offense have yet, but do not overlook Smith-Njigba. Should Seattle make a deep playoff run, he will be at the center of it, as will remain the case for many years to come. His transition to NFL stardom may not have happened immediately, but patience truly is the ultimate virtue.
