The Seattle Seahawks were facing a tough challenge on two major fronts against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 9. One, they were without their starting quarterback, Sam Darnold. Second, they were without their Future Hall of Fame defensive tackle, Leonard Williams. Both missing; no problem, it seemed.
The Seahawks' defense will never be better without Williams, yet they held strong in his absence, allowing just three points. On offense, Lock had the edge, having already played against and beaten the Cardinals earlier in the season. He passed with flying colours again and led the Seahawks to a win.
That said, he didn't have to do much in the passing game, throwing for just 175 yards on 19 completions, including a touchdown. Seattle's running backs carried the day, but even with the Seahawks' low passing numbers, Jaxon Smith-Njigba still accomplished things few have before.
Seattle Seahawks' Jaxon Smith-Njigba makes NFL and franchise history all in one day
It was unfortunate not to see Smith-Njigba put up his regular 100-yard-plus in Seattle's Week 9 game. His 51 yards against the Cardinals marked just the second time this season Smith-Njigba has been held under 100 yards.
Maybe he was due, or maybe the Seahawks' offensive game plan was to go heavy on the run. Either way, it wasn't a gaudy day for Smith-Njigba, but he still reached two major milestones with his seven receptions.
Cooper Kupp and Smith-Njigba had two things in common. One, they're both Offensive Players of the Year. Two, they're both Super Bowl champions. Now they have a third thing in common: they're two of the only three players in NFL history to record 1,000 receiving yards and at least 10 touchdowns in a season's first nine games.
Kupp did it with the Los Angeles Rams in 2021 (the season that wrote his name in the Hall of Fame), and Jerry Rice did it in 1990 with the San Francisco 49ers. Now, you can write Smith-Njigba's name for the Seahawks in 2026.
The superstar wideout, who has led the league in receiving yards since Week 1, is the first wideout to hit the mark this season. The next closest player is CeeDee Lamb with 904 yards (132 behind Smith-Njigba).
To add some sizzle to Smith-Njigba's unreal season, he's just doing what he did last season when he also hit the 1,000-yard mark nine games into the season. As for any franchise milestones Smith-Njigba hit on Sunday, it marked his third consecutive 1,000-yard season, joining franchise legends Steve Largent and Tyler Lockett as the only wide receivers in Seahawks history to do so.
Smith-Njigba's non-explosive numbers against the Cardinals didn’t compare with his first meeting with them this season (9 receptions for 155 yards and 3 touchdowns in Week 2), but even a quiet game shows how elite he is.
Remember how last season the debate was whether Smith-Njigba had reached elite status as a wide receiver yet? The debate is officially over. It was over before Week 9.
Add us as a preferred source on Google