Buckeyes WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba Back to His Best for Seahawks?

After a hamstring injury ended Jaxon Smith-Njigba's junior season at Ohio State prematurely, he is already showing signs of recovery for the Seattle Seahawks.

Author:
Harrison Reno
Jun 17, 2023 6:14 PM EDT

Heading into his junior season, then Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba was shaping up to be one of the first to be taken off the board at his position in the 2023 NFL Draft.

But a hamstring injury saw him play just three games last season for Ohio State, which has even rolled over into the start of OTAs this spring with the Seattle Seahawks, which saw him drop down the board.

Yet, the No. 20 overall pick in this past April's NFL Draft is already showing signs of returning to his best this offseason. Following a ramp-up period to start OTAs, as the Seahawks took every precaution to ensure the ex-Buckeye was fully healthy, he ended Seattle's mandatory minicamp as a full participant.

"I think we did it the right way," Smith-Njigba said on Tuesday about the ramp-up process. "I appreciate the training staff and the coaching staff for doing that. It's been a long time since I've really been out there since when I started OTAs, so I feel like we did it the right way, and I appreciate them just slowly building me up, and I feel like we are all ready to go and checked a lot of boxes."

Nothing proved to be more evidence of Smith-Njigba's return to nearly 100 percent than the viral clip of him going one-on-one with fellow first-round draft pick cornerback Devon Witherspoon.

Smith-Njigba got the better of the No. 5 overall pick on a deep ball from Geno Smith, giving fans and coaches alike a glimpse of what they are getting in the former Buckeye.

Njigba broke out for Ohio State as a sophomore totaling over 1600 yards and nine touchdowns in 13 games, which concluded with a record-breaking 347-yard and three-touchdown performance in the Rose Bowl.

The Seahawks are hoping that by the time training camp rolls around in late July that they will continue to see a 100 percent healthy Smith-Njigba.