Jaxon Smith-Njigba came out of Ohio State with a tremendous pedigree in 2023 and was productive through his first two seasons. However, his fantasy football status leveled up in a meaningful way in 2025, courtesy of a monster 119-1,793-10 season.
His ceiling is nothing short of elite, but can he repeat that level of success and return the production now expected of him as a Tier 1 wideout?
Should You Draft Jaxon Smith-Njigba in Fantasy Football?
Smith-Njigba’s Redraft Fantasy Football Value
Not all growth is linear, but JSN’s trajectory has worked exactly how we’ve wanted, positioning him to sustain these levels of elite production for years to come.
From a macro point of view, there isn’t much of an in-house threat to his workload. Cooper Kupp’s best football is in the rearview mirror, Rashid Shaheed is a talented but limited change-of-pace option, and the Jake Bobo/Tory Horton tandem isn’t intimidating.
To further fuel the optimism, Kenneth Walker is now a Chief—a move that could pave the way for the play-calling to trend closer to the league average in terms of pass rate.
Lowest Pass Rates in One-Score Games (2025)
The league average was 58.5% last season. If this offense trends in that general direction, any concerns over efficiency will be quieted, if not muted altogether.
When focusing on the micro details, the case for JSN only gets stronger. In 2023, he posted a 17% target share and produced 3.9% below PPR expectations on those looks. Those aren’t bad numbers for a rookie, and he built on them in a meaningful way the following season with a 24.1% share and a 6.9% performance over PPR expectations.
Growth—that’s all we can ask for, and we got even more of it during his massive 2025 campaign (35.8% target share and 28.4% over PPR expectations). Very good receivers will see either their efficiency or their role increase, while a select few do both simultaneously.
There are five Tier 1 players entering the 2026 fantasy season, and you’re overthinking it if JSN isn’t one of them. Shuffle up and deal those names however you like (Bijan Robinson, Jahmyr Gibbs, Ja’Marr Chase, and Puka Nacua), but if you land any of them, you’re sitting pretty. That is why I like the idea of picking fifth overall if given the choice in a redraft setting.
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Smith-Njigba’s Dynasty Fantasy Football Value
Let’s keep the good times rolling. Smith-Njigba is entering his age-24 season, and while it feels as if Sam Darnold has been in our lives forever, he turned just 29 this summer and can be counted on to keep his WR1 fed for at least the next handful of years.
Also Read: Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: How to Win Your League After Selecting Bijan Robinson First Overall
Wide receivers are the lifeblood of dynasty leagues, and the long-term outlook here is as good as any in the sport. His combination of athleticism and precision is elite and should be treated as such. This isn’t a sell-high situation; this is a “thank your lucky stars that you have the pleasure of clicking this guy into your lineup weekly” situation.
You can feel great about building a winner in both the short- and long-term with JSN locked into your WR1 role.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.