SEATTLE (AP) — Outside of signing a record-setting contract extension with the Seattle Seahawks in March, plenty has gone right for Jaxon Smith-Njigba in 2026.
A month before Smith-Njigba signed a four-year, $168.8-million deal, with $120 million guaranteed, which makes 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 AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year after setting the team record for yards receiving (1,793) and receptions (119) in a season. Following the Seahawks’ first day of minicamp practices on Tuesday, Smith-Njigba said he considers both the personal and team-wide accolades he has benefitted from a “blessing.”
“This year has been great,” 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 an amazing year.
“And, we’re six months into the year, and I’m looking forward to the rest of it.”
Plenty of time remains 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 head home to Texas to train 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 is in the early stages of learning the system that first-year offense coordinator Brian Fleury is instituting. The offensive scheme is expected to be similar to that of former offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, who is now coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.
After a handful of meetings and practices with Fleury, Smith-Njigba has found him to be a fairly straight-forward coach.
“All the guys, we’re excited to be back and learn together and be together and figure this thing out,” Smith-Njigba said. “It’s been awesome.”
On a personal level, the fourth-year wideout thinks he can improve in Fleury’s offense in his second consecutive season alongside Darnold and wide receivers Cooper Kupp and Rashid Shaheed. The 6-foot, 202-pound Smith-Njigba said he thinks he can get bigger, faster and stronger ahead of the 2026 season.
He has plenty of disposable income to work with to make strides in those areas, but Smith-Njigba has yet to make any drastic changes on a personal level since signing his extension.
Even as he finds himself on lists like “ 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. Though the accomplishments and milestones keep piling up, Smith-Njigba is committed to staying hungry on the field, and taking it easy off it.
“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 chill.”
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Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, right, greets a coach during practice at the team's training facility, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba talks to members of the media after a NFL football practice at the team's training facility, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba answers a reporter's question after a NFL football practice at the team's training facility, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)
