He found a new one Sunday.
Smith-Njigba caught three touchdown passes against the Arizona Cardinals on September 20, setting a career high and becoming the first Seahawks player to record three receiving touchdowns in one game since DK Metcalf did it in 2023, according to Seahawks PR.
And his afternoon started with an entirely different career best.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba Opens Cardinals Game With 82-Yard TD
Seattle wasted almost no time finding Smith-Njigba.
On the Seahawks’ second offensive play, Drew Lock launched a deep pass to Smith-Njigba for an 82-yard touchdown. The Seahawks confirmed it was the longest reception of Smith-Njigba’s NFL career, breaking his previous high of 63 yards.
That would have been a pretty good afternoon by itself.
Smith-Njigba wasn’t finished.
Lock found him again for a touchdown in the third quarter, then connected with him for a third time in the fourth. That last score pushed Smith-Njigba somewhere he had not been during his first three NFL seasons: three receiving touchdowns in the same game.
All three Seattle touchdowns through that point had come from the Lock-to-Smith-Njigba connection, with scores at 82 yards, 7 yards and 12 yards.
JSN Finds Another Career High After Historic 2025 Season
That Smith-Njigba can still find new statistical ground is notable considering what he did last season.
He led the NFL with 1,793 receiving yards in 2025 while catching a franchise-record 119 passes and scoring 10 touchdowns. Smith-Njigba won AP Offensive Player of the Year and earned unanimous first-team All-Pro honors during the Seahawks’ Super Bowl run.
The Seahawks rewarded him with a multiyear extension in March, identifying him as one of the foundational pieces of the roster. Seattle did not disclose the financial terms in its announcement.
Sunday offered another example of why.
The 82-yarder showed the explosive element. The other two touchdowns showed Smith-Njigba didn’t need 80 yards of grass to take over the game.
Drew Lock Keeps Feeding Seahawks’ No. 1 Receiver
The quarterback attached to the milestone matters, too.
Lock started against Arizona with Sam Darnold unavailable after suffering a hip injury in Seattle’s season-opening win over the New England Patriots. Lock had already stepped in for Darnold in that game, helping Seattle finish off a 13-10 victory.
Against Arizona, he repeatedly went to the safest answer Seattle’s offense has.
Smith-Njigba entered Week 2 after catching eight passes for 122 yards and a touchdown in the opener, according to the Seahawks’ official statistics. His first two games of 2026 have therefore produced another fast start after one of the best receiving seasons in franchise history.
One long touchdown would have made the highlight reel.
Three put Smith-Njigba in a category he had never reached before.
For a receiver who spent most of 2025 running out of records to break, that’s getting harder to do.
Seattle Seahawks Announce Jaxon Smith-Njigba Career News vs. Cardinals