Jaxon Smith-Njigba has gone from one of Seattle’s top young receivers to the clear center of the Seahawks’ offense. In 2025, he accounted for 31% of Seattle’s total offensive yards, 44% of the team’s gross passing yards and 35.8% of its targets, making him one of the most important players in the NFL by volume and role.
That kind of usage is rare enough on its own. It becomes even more notable when paired with the fact that Smith-Njigba won the 2025 Offensive Player of the Year award and is now trying to do it again in 2026. Only Earl Campbell and Marshall Faulk have won the award in consecutive seasons, and both stretched that run to three straight years. Smith-Njigba is not there yet, but the conversation is no longer hypothetical.
Seattle’s offense runs through JSN
The Seahawks have already shown how central Smith-Njigba is to their passing game, especially after trading DK Metcalf. He was not just productive; he was the primary driver of the offense. That was especially important on a team that leaned on him to the point that his production shaped the overall identity of the unit.
The numbers from 2025 tell the story. Smith-Njigba finished with 1,829 scrimmage yards, including 1,793 receiving yards and six touchdowns. He also set a Seahawks franchise record with six games of at least 100 yards, topping Steve Largent’s 46-year-old mark from 1979, when Largent had five such games.
For a franchise that has had stars like Largent, Cortez Kennedy and Walter Jones, that is a significant place to land. It also helps explain why Smith-Njigba has become such a prominent part of the Seahawks’ present and future. As Seaside Joe put it, he is already forcing his way into a very short list of the most impactful players in team history.
Early 2026 pace keeps the pressure on
The production has not slowed. Four games into the 2026 season, Smith-Njigba led the NFL with six touchdowns, while ranking third in yards and fourth in receptions. That kind of start only strengthens the idea that his 2025 season was not a one-year spike, but the beginning of a stretch in which he can keep carrying Seattle’s passing attack.
The scale of that role is striking. Smith-Njigba accounted for nearly half of Seattle’s passing production and nearly one-third of the team’s total offense. He is no longer just a featured receiver; he is the engine.
That is why the talk around him has moved from breakout candidate to repeat award chase. The question now is not whether Smith-Njigba belongs in the conversation. It is whether he can keep producing at a level that makes back-to-back Offensive Player of the Year awards realistic. For Seattle, the answer may determine just how far the offense can go in 2026.
