DK Metcalf on Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seahawks still being ‘overlooked’ in 2023

National Football League

Updated Jul. 25, 2023 1:15 p.m. ET

DK Metcalf‘s eyes lit up as soon as he heard the name Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

The veteran Seattle Seahawks wide receiver and Gatorade-sponsored athlete was in Los Angeles to help celebrate the winners of the 2022-23 Gatorade Player of the Year Awards, given to top high school athletes around the country for their athletic excellence, academic achievement and exemplary character. Jackson Arnold, the quarterback from Guyer High School in Denton, Texas, who signed with Oklahoma as a consensus five-star prospect in December, was this year’s football honoree.

Before the ceremony, Metcalf grinned when asked about his first impressions of Smith-Njigba, one of Seattle’s two first-round picks this year.

“He acts like a pro already,” Metcalf told FOX Sports at the event. “Great, great dude. He’s just a great person all around, on and off the football field. … He knows how to run routes already. He’s a veteran when he steps on the field and just understands defenses and route-running so that the coaches don’t really have to teach him anything.

“He can just go out there and play and be himself.”

Smith-Njigba dealt with injuries during the 2022 season, but his breakout 2021 at Ohio State still flashed enough talent for the Seahawks to take him at No. 20 overall in April. The former Buckeye had 1,606 receiving yards and nine touchdowns on 95 receptions in 2021, even while playing alongside fellow star receivers Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson. In the 2022 Rose Bowl, Smith-Njigba had 347 yards and three touchdowns to lead Ohio State to a win over Utah, with Olave and Wilson sitting out to prepare for that year’s draft.

With Smith-Njigba now added alongside Metcalf and fellow veteran wideout Tyler Lockett, the Seahawks figure to feature one of the NFL’s premier pass-catching trios as they challenge the San Francisco 49ers for NFC West supremacy.

“For sure,” Metcalf said when asked if he believes that Seattle can boast the best wide receiver group in the league. “We have all the tools, all the intangibles to do it. We’ve just got to put it together and play together.”

The Seahawks caught many people by surprise last season by reaching the playoffs with a 9-8 record after trading franchise quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos. Thanks to his rapport with former backup Geno Smith, who had to battle to secure the starting quarterback job in training camp last year, Metcalf had a career-high 90 receptions for 1,048 yards and six touchdown catches.

Smith is now firmly entrenched as the Seahawks’ starting quarterback heading into 2023 after signing a three-year contract worth up to $105 million earlier this offseason, and Metcalf could not be happier.

“It’s just a blessing to see him go from the backup quarterback and to just see his journey while he’s been in Seattle,” he said. “I’m just super proud of him and just pumped to see what he does next.”

The Seahawks not only beefed up their offense around Smith and Metcalf but also their defense by selecting Illinois cornerback Devon Witherspoon at No. 5 overall in the 2023 NFL Draft. That was one of the picks Seattle received from the Broncos in exchange for Wilson. Now every day in practice, Metcalf will face off against both Witherspoon and Tariq Woolen, the 2022 fifth-round pick who led the NFL with six interceptions as a rookie.

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf poses with Gatorade 2023 National Player of the Year winners Max Clark, Ransford Gyan, Harper Murray and Ava Brown at the 2023 Gatorade NPOY Awards ceremony on July 11 in Los Angeles (Courtesy of Gatorade)

“Going up against Tariq is always a challenge for me,” Metcalf said. “He’s big and fast and can be physical at times. So just to see his growth from year one to year two, it’s special, and then just getting Devon Witherspoon on the same page, too. … We’ve got a loaded [defensive back] group that I’m looking forward to seeing.”

The Seahawks are widely expected to make another playoff bid in 2023, with many of their 2022 doubters changing their tune after last season. But Metcalf still believes his team is not getting the respect it deserves.

“I think teams are still looking over us, people are still looking over us,” Metcalf said.

“That’s a good thing because when we whoop their ass, it’s not going to be expected.”

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