The Seattle Seahawks have gotten off to an impressive start heading into their Week 10 game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Seattle is looking every bit like a contender in the NFC with new quarterback Sam Darnold leading the offense to an impressive 28.9 points per game so far.
However, there’s another breakout performer on offense, and one former player is making a strong MVP case for the Seahawks star.
“Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the actual MVP of the NFL. We can make all the mental gymnastics we want to about the quarterbacks, but nobody is really dominating. The person who’s dominating is ‘JSN.’ He’s averaging 118 yards per game. He has 948 in eight games, 4.6 yards per route. Had Calvin Johnson done that in 2012 when he broke the receiving record, he would’ve had 3,503 yards that season,” Andrew Hawkins said.
"Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the actual MVP of the NFL."
—@Hawk pic.twitter.com/ulXMiF37NF
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) November 6, 2025
The 23-year-old has gotten better in each of his three NFL seasons, and through eight games this year, he is producing like the best wide receiver in the league.
Smith-Njigba is on pace for more than 2,000 receiving yards, but as historic as that would be, it’s been very difficult for anyone other than a quarterback to win NFL MVP.
Teammate Cooper Kupp can attest to that, as four years ago, he caught 145 passes for 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns for the Los Angeles Rams but finished third in the voting behind Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady.
It would be great to see Smith-Njigba win the award, and if he can continue to produce at this level while no quarterback separates from the pack, perhaps he can do so.
NEXT: Louis Riddick Reveals Honest Thoughts About Sam Darnold