Former Rockwall High School Star Jaxon Smith-Njigba had to wait a few picks longer than some experts thought, but he has found himself in a great situation after being drafted 20th overall by the Seattle Seahawks in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Smith-Njigba was the third former Texas high school football player taken in the draft, behind Tyree Wilson from West Rusk and Christian Gonzalez from The Colony. Wilson went 7th to the Las Vegas Raiders, and Gonzalez went 17th to the New England Patriots.
Rockwall High School
Growing up in Rockwall, Texas, Smith-Njigba attended Rockwall High School, where he led all high school football players in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex with 97 receptions for 1,828 yards and 20 touchdowns in his junior season. As a senior, he caught 104 passes for 2,094 yards and 35 touchdowns, earning him the Landry Award and Texas Gatorade Football Player of the Year award. After playing in the 2019 All-American Bowl, Smith-Njigba committed to Ohio State University as a 5-star prospect and the nation’s #5 ranked wide receiver.
Ohio State
During his college career, Smith-Njigba made an immediate impact. As a freshman, he led Ohio State’s freshmen with 10 receptions for 49 yards and one touchdown. Then, in his sophomore season, he set a single-game school record with 15 receptions for 240 yards and a touchdown in a win against Nebraska. Later that season, he set an Ohio State single-game and FBS Bowl record for receiving yards with 347 in the 2022 Rose Bowl. In that game, he also recorded 15 receptions and surpassed David Boston for the single-season receiving yards record at Ohio State with 1,606.
Limited to only three games in 2022 due to a hamstring injury, Smith-Njigba decided not to participate in the College Playoff and announced that he would enter the 2023 NFL Draft.
Seattle Seahawks
Smith-Njigba finds himself in a very good situation in Seattle. He joins veteran wide receivers, DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. He will fit right in as the third wide receiver and should see a high volume of passes coming his way in his rookie season. The Seahawks also have second-year running back Kenneth Walker III, who looked dominant at the end of the season and should help to open up the passing game as defenses load the box against him in early downs.
The Seahawks also have Geno Smith, who is coming off a great year and is an accurate passer that should click well with Smith-Njigba. The Seahawks have young talent on both sides of the ball, and with the ageless wonder Pete Carroll at the helm, the Seahawks should be competitive in the NFC West and content for a playoff spot.
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