Not many players have improved as much as Jaxon Smith-Njigba during the 2025 season. The wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks continues to put up historic numbers. He’s on pace to finish the year with 2,029 receiving yards, breaking Calvin Johnson’s single-season record of 1,964 yards set in 2012.
Smith-Njigba is a big candidate for the Offensive Player of the Year (OPOY) award. He’s been excellent in every aspect of the game, and defenses have had no answer for him. But he also understands that this has much more to do with the new offense built by Seattle than any individual improvement.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba Credits Klint Kubiak With Excellent Performances in 2025
The wide receiver is still level-headed even as he makes his case for OPOY in 2025. He understands that his great year does not mean that he’s suddenly the best player in the position. Instead, he prefers to give credit to his new surroundings.
Speaking to SI reporter Albert Breer after the win over the Tennessee Titans, he made sure to give his flowers to his quarterback and his offensive coordinator. “It’s just more opportunities, honestly. A fresh start with a new offense, with [OC] Klint Kubiak coming in, and Sam Darnold, they’re telling me, We’re gonna give you more opportunities to make plays. Just a lot of hard work in the offseason.”
He’s surely earning more opportunities. He’s currently averaging 9.7 targets per game, almost two more targets than his 8.06 targets in 2024. But his numbers have already exploded: he has 1,313 yards, 80 receptions, and seven touchdowns in the current season.
In his first two years, he amassed 1,758 yards in 34 total games. It’s worth noting that the Seahawks had D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett on the roster, which negated some of his opportunities. But Smith-Njigba is obviously making the best of his new role as the No. 1 receiver.
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Our PFSN WR Impact Metric surely agrees that this has been a historic year. With no surprises, Smith-Njigba is the best-graded player in the position, with a 97.7 impact score and an A+ grade. Only Puka Nacua is close: he holds an impact score of 97.0 and is the only other wide receiver to earn an A+ grade.
It will be exciting to see whether he can break the record for most receiving yards in a season. Nevertheless, Smith-Njigba has clearly established himself as one of the best in the game. It remains to be seen whether he’ll consistently put up those numbers.
