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In addition to signing a record-breaking contract extension with the Seattle Seahawks in March, a lot has gone right for 2026 Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
A month before Smith-Njigba signed a four-year, $168.8 million deal with $120 million guaranteed, making the 24-year-old the highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL, he was a key cog on the Seahawks’ Super Bowl-winning team.
Shortly before Super Bowl 60, Smith-Njigba was named the AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year after setting team records for receiving yards (1,793) and receptions (119) in a season. After the Seahawks’ first day of minicamp practices on Tuesday, Smith-Njigba said he considers both the personal and team-wide recognition he’s enjoyed a “blessing.”
“This year has been amazing,” Smith-Njigba said. “It’s brought me a lot of great things and things to learn and overcome and trophies and parades and stuff like that. So it’s been a blessing. It’s been a great year.
“And we’re six months into the year, and I’m looking forward to the rest of it.”
There is plenty of time left until the Seahawks open the season with a Super Bowl rematch against the New England Patriots on Sept. 9 in Seattle, which will give Smith-Njigba a chance to return home to Texas to work out this offseason. But when Smith-Njigba returns to Seattle later this summer, he looks forward to picking up where he and the Seahawks left off.
Smith-Njigba, quarterback Sam Darnold and the rest of Seattle’s offense are in the early stages of learning the system that first-year offensive coordinator Brian Fleury is putting in place. The offensive scheme is expected to be similar to that of former offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, who is now the coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.
After a handful of meetings and practices with Fleury, Smith-Njigba has found him to be a fairly straightforward coach.
“All the guys, we’re excited to be back and learning together and being together and figuring this out,” Smith-Njigba said. “It’s been great.”
On a personal level, the fourth-year wideout believes he can improve in Fleury’s offense for his second straight season alongside Darnold and wide receivers Cooper Kupp and Rashid Shaheed. The 6-foot, 202-pound Smith-Njigba said he believes he can get bigger, faster and stronger ahead of the 2026 season.
He has plenty of disposable income to work with to make progress in those areas, but Smith-Njigba has yet to make any drastic changes on a personal level since signing his extension.
Although he finds himself on lists such as “Time” magazine’s “The Top 100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026”, the cool and collected Smith-Njigba has sought to keep a low profile. Even as the achievements and milestones keep piling up, Smith-Njigba is committed to staying hungry on the pitch and taking it easy.
“I’m a simple man, that’s what I’m really trying to say,” Smith-Njigba said. “I love to play ball, I love to be here, I love to go home and relax.”
Report from the Associated Press.
