Jaxon Smith-Njigba helped strengthen Sam Darnold’s career revival. His ability to split double-teams and haul in clutch targets downfield was instrumental in the Seattle Seahawks rise from “good in an ultimately frustrating way” to “Super Bowl champions two years after Pete Carroll’s departure.”
Now he’s getting paid like a difference maker. On Monday, the reigning offensive player of the year became the highest paid wide receiver in the game. It wasn’t a matter of a minor bump at an already expensive position.
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His four-year, $168.6 million contract has a total value $7.6 million higher than Ja’Marr Chase’s previous record holder among wideouts. It’s 28.6 million better than Justin Jefferson, now relegated to third place. His $120 million in guaranteed money is $8 million more than Chase and $10 million above Jefferson.
This is all impressive but not surprising. Seattle put its faith in the former first round pick in 2025, trading away DK Metcalf and making Smith-Njigba the top receiving option in a new-look offense run by Darnold. He responded with more receiving yards last fall (1,793) than he’d had his first two seasons as a pro combined (1,758). His 10-catch, 153-yard performance in the NFC Championship Game helped the Seahawks overcome the Los Angeles Rams and set the path to the franchise’s second world title.
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That’s a big, logical bet on a player without whom the Seahawks don’t make it to the Super Bowl. How will it affect Seattle’s roster building going forward?
The deal: Seahawks extend WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba for four years, $168.6 million ($120 million guaranteed)
Jaxon Smith-Njigba
We’ve already seen an expected exodus from a high profile winner ripe with available veterans. The first week of free agency saw Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III depart. He was followed by Boye Mafe, Riq Woolen and Coby Bryant, all of whom signed deals worth at least $12 million annually. Josh Jobe and Rashid Shaheed returned on three-year deals, but the balance shifted heavily toward losing veteran talent this March rather than retaining it.
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Those departures helped clear the salary cap space needed to make Smith-Njigba the highest paid non-quarterback, non-pass rusher in the NFL. It was further made possible by Darnold’s $33.5 million average salary — a number that’s going to jump before the 2027 season, as his guaranteed money will run out after 2026. Starting next year, Seattle will be paying its quarterback-wideout combination something close to $100 million per year. Accounting tricks will help massage those numbers, but at its face the Seahawks will likely have around 30 percent of their salary cap tied to two players.
That’s a difficult tightrope to walk. The Kansas City Chiefs couldn’t afford Patrick Mahomes AND Tyreek Hill. The Green Bay Packers didn’t keep Davante Adams. In fact, there no other position that sees the same volume of high profile All-Pro caliber players like wideout, in large part because these guys are incredibly valuable and always lock in a strong draft return via trade.
That’s both concerning and reassuring. It may not work out with Smith-Njigba. But barring disaster, he’s still going to bring back a first round pick and more even with an unprecedented contract sucking up salary cap space.
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Furthermore, the Seahawks can feel comfortable about shedding expensive veteran talent because they’ve been so good about hitting on young studs in the draft. Mafe, Bryant and Woolen were all Seattle draft picks. General manager John Schneider played a backseat to Pete Carroll when he was head coach and de facto personnel czar, but we’ve seen the string of high profile draft hits continue now that Schneider has teamed with Mike Macdonald. Nick Emmanwori and Grey Zabel both played key roles on 2025’s team as rookies. The draft class prior landed Bryon Murphy and Tyrice Wright. 2023 (Carroll’s last draft) saw Smith-Njigba, Devon Witherspoon and Zach Charbonnet join the locker room.
That’s all to say backfilling the veteran departures of 2026 and beyond thanks to Smith-Njigba’s big deal (and Darnold’s pending one) isn’t as much of a concern in Seattle as it may be elsewhere. The Seahawks have consistently churned out above-average starters in the draft.
The odds of finding another JSN, however, were too low to make his departure feasible. The Seahawks had to pay up, knowing they could absorb the veteran losses that came with the budget shift and, if there’s buyer’s remorse down the road, trade their star wideout away for a prized haul. It was pretty much Seattle’s only move, and for a $168.6 million investment, it’s actually fairly risk free.
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Or, at least as risk-free as an extension can be in a league where injuries constantly derail the best laid plans of contenders and tankers alike.
Grade: A
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Grading Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s mega-deal with the Seahawks