Rams and Seahawks fans don’t usually find much to agree on, but ESPN’s latest receiver rankings handed both sides an unusual little gift: a shared reason to roll their eyes.
The list, shaped by league personnel from front offices and coaching staffs, opened with Ja’Marr Chase of the Bengals and Justin Jefferson of the Vikings at No. 1 and No. 2.
Then came the surprise for anyone tracking the NFC West’s own debate over the NFL’s top receiver. Seattle’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba landed at No. 3, while Los Angeles Rams star Puka Nacua checked in at No.
That ordering is enough to make people squint, especially after the seasons those two just put together.
Smith-Njigba finished with 110 catches for 1,793 yards and 10 touchdowns, along with 79 first downs and 27 big gains, defined as receptions of 20 or more yards. He averaged 105.5 yards per game. Nacua was right there with him, posting 129 receptions, 1,715 yards, 10 touchdowns, 80 first downs and 27 big gains, while averaging 107.2 yards per game.
For comparison, Chase had 125 catches for 1,412 yards and eight touchdowns, plus 73 first downs, 15 big gains and 88.3 yards per game. Jefferson finished with 84 receptions, 1,048 yards and two touchdowns, along with 47 first downs, 12 big gains and 61.6 yards per game.
The circumstances matter, and the source material makes that clear. Chase spent much of the season without Joe Burrow, who missed most of the year with turf toe and wasn’t healthy when he did play. Chase also caught passes from a 40-year-old Joe Flacco and career backup Jake Browning.
Jefferson had his own mess to navigate in Minnesota, where he worked with JJ McCarthy, Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer. Former Rams running back Cam Akers even led the team in passer rating after completing his only throw, a 32-yard touchdown.
Still, the argument for Nacua and Smith-Njigba goes beyond one season. Jefferson’s resume is loaded, and he’s off to one of the best six-year starts to an NFL career in league history.
But over the last three seasons, his production hasn’t matched Nacua’s. The same goes for Chase, whose spectacular 2024 season still doesn’t quite put his three-year body of work ahead of Nacua’s, even with Nacua missing six games two years ago.
Through three seasons, Nacua sits atop the NFL’s all-time leaderboard with 95.3 receiving yards per game. Jefferson is next at 90.2, followed by Chase at 87.7.
Even the grading systems tilt toward the two younger stars. In PFF’s rankings, Jefferson finished 14th among 81 eligible wideouts last season with an 80.5 grade, while Chase came in fourth. Nacua and Smith-Njigba took the top two spots, with Nacua’s 96.3 standing as the highest grade in PFF’s 20-year history.
And then there’s the line that may have raised the most eyebrows in Fowler’s write-up on Smith-Njigba’s reputation: "That was a common refrain from voters: When game-planning, Smith-Njigba doesn't strike fear in coaches like some others do."
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