The NFL’s annual player vote gave Jaxon Smith-Njigba a measure of how quickly his standing around the league has changed.
The NFL announced Monday on X that the Seattle Seahawks wide receiver landed at No. 5 on the Top 100 Players of 2026, his first appearance on the list.
The ranking comes after a season in which Smith-Njigba won AP Offensive Player of the Year, earned first-team All-Pro honors and helped Seattle win Super Bowl LX.
Seahawks.com noted that Smith-Njigba became only the fourth Seattle player to crack the Top 10 since the NFL Top 100 began in 2011. The three previous players were a quarterback, running back and cornerback, making Smith-Njigba the first Seahawks receiver to reach the Top 10 during the list’s run.
Smith-Njigba checked in one spot ahead of Christian McCaffrey at No. 6 and two ahead of Puka Nacua at No. 7.
Smith-Njigba’s 2025 Season Put Him in Elite Company
Seattle’s decision to make Smith-Njigba the main feature of its passing game paid off in a way few could have projected.
He finished the 2025 regular season with 119 catches for an NFL-leading 1,793 yards and 10 touchdowns. His yardage total ranked eighth in league history for a single season, while his 15.1 yards per reception represented a sizable jump from the 11.3 he averaged in 2024.
Smith-Njigba also showed that his production wasn’t tied to one alignment. NFL Pro data showed he led the league with 88 receptions and 1,378 receiving yards when lined up outside in 2025.
One year earlier, he led the NFL with 79 catches and 965 yards from the slot.
That versatility helped turn the former No. 20 overall pick into the league’s Offensive Player of the Year and eventually its highest-paid wide receiver. Seattle signed him to a four-year, $168.6 million extension this offseason.
Devon Witherspoon, who has practiced against Smith-Njigba since both arrived as first-round picks in 2023, floated a simple explanation for the rise.
“He can do everything. He can run any route, he makes contested catches,” Witherspoon told Seahawks.com.
Seahawks Now Wait for Smith-Njigba’s Encore
The No. 5 ranking arrives with a challenge attached to it, as Smith-Njigba enters 2026 with superstar expectations rather than breakout-player intrigue.
Seattle also has another offensive transition to navigate. NFL.com noted that Brian Fleury will be Smith-Njigba’s fourth offensive coordinator in four NFL seasons. The receiver will be asked to maintain last year’s production while learning another system and operating as the clear focal point defenses build their plans around.
In terms of other Seahawks making the Top 100 list, Sam Darnold, who threw for 4,048 yards during Seattle’s championship season, also made it at No. 21. Ernest Jones IV checked in at No. 97, giving the Seahawks three players on this year’s list.
Smith-Njigba, however, owns the highest spot among them by a wide margin.
After a 1,793-yard season, a Super Bowl title and a record-setting contract, the league’s players have placed him among the five best players in football.
For Seattle, the next question is whether his first Top 100 appearance becomes the start of an extended stay near the top.