That doesn’t sound right, but I don’t know enough about stars to dispute it.
– Mac, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
I will wear high heels so that you will hear my approach on the cobblestones, and you will have time to repent.
– Polly, Peaky Blinders
One game does not a career make. Even after exploding in Week 9 against the Rams, Jaxon Smith-Njigba is only up to WR14 on the season. But his Sunday eruption gives you a little better sense of how he might have overshadowed Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave, and Marvin Harrison in college. It hearkened back to his 15-catch, 347-yard, three-score performance against Utah in the bowl game.
JSN’s 180-yard, two-score affair was easily the biggest game of his NFL career, but it could have been much bigger. Arguably his two most impressive plays — a 40-yard reception and a 38-yard reception — were called back. He was also open deep down the sidelines for what might have been an 83-yard TD. Geno Smith overthrew that pass, but it helps explain how Smith-Njigba got to 225 air yards.
Smith-Njigba is now up to an aDOT of 9.3, which is almost identical to plays like Wilson and Zay Flowers, a duo that has been inconsistent but electric in 2024. In fact, Flowers led the league in air yards in Week 8 before going supernova in Week 9. This is also the aDOT that Cooper Kupp posted in his epic 2021 season after having been limited to aDOTs in the 7.0s under Shane Waldron.
The air yards are obviously a huge story after Waldron ruined his rookie season by asking him to jog in the direction of the nearest defensive back and stand. Waldron is now in the process of ruining one of the most highly touted prospects ever, while Smith-Njigba’s 225 air yards were the third highest total for any receiver this season. The question now is what happens when D.K. Metcalf returns.
Metcalf led the league in air yards in each of his final two appearances before the knee injury (166 in Week 6; 159 in Week 7).
Through seven weeks, Smith-Njigba led the team in receptions, but was a distant third in yards and air yards. Tyler Lockett actually led the team in first downs.
It’s pretty rare to have a former first-round pick put up separate 16-target and 225-air yard performances through the first nine weeks of his second year, and still wonder whether he’s going to be something. But that’s what Smith-Njigba has given us.
It’s tempting to say that we want consistency from here, but that’s not quite accurate. We want frequent greatness. We want to see Geno Smith continue to develop. Against the Rams he offered repeated glimpses of the top-10 arm talent. Unfortunately, they were intermixed with brutal reminders of his decision-making lapses. Can he emerge as a viable starter for either a) a Ryan Grubb offense, or b) a serious playoff contender? Can he do it at age 34 in the middle of his second season as the Seahawks starter?
