Who Should I Start? Garrett Wilson or Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Monday, January 8, 12:17 PM

New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson (neck, elbow), who suffered a neck injury in the Week 18 win over the New England Patriots in the regular season finale on Sunday, said he is fine. Wilson also said he doesn't think he needs surgery for an elbow injury that he dealt with all year. The 23-year-old was believed to have suffered a head injury when he took a hard hit in Sunday's contest, but he avoided any kind of serious injury and will have a normal offseason as he heads into his third NFL season. Despite losing quarterback Aaron Rodgers to a torn Achilles in Week 1, Wilson finished with 95 catches for 1,042 yards and three touchdowns in 2023. His 168 targets ranked fourth among all wideouts. With more stability under center hopefully in 2024, the sky is the limit for Wilson.

Monday, January 8, 5:25 AM

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba caught three of his five targets for 14 yards in Sunday's win over the Arizona Cardinals. The receptions were tied with tight ends Will Dissly and Colby Parkinson for the team lead but made for a quiet end to a modest debut season for the Ohio State product. Selected 20th overall in the 2023 draft, there were hopes that Smith-Njigba would replicate the first-year successes of his former college teammates Garrett Wilson and Christian Olave. As it was, Smith-Njigba proved to be firmly entrenched as the third receiver on Seattle's depth chart and was probably lucky to see the amount of work that he did. His production was also hindered by the routes designed for him, as his average depth of target of 5.8 yards was among the lowest in the league. His rookie year will conclude with 63 receptions for 628 yards and four touchdowns in 17 games.