At the end of last week, the Seahawks picked up the fifth-year option on receiver Jaxon Smith-Ngiba’s rookie contract. Smith-Ngiba was awarded his second contract at the start of this week.
The four-year extension brings the average annual salary for a receiver to $42.15 million, making the bar higher than the $40 million average annual salary Bengals receiver Jamaal Chase set last year.
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Here are the full details of Smith-Ngiba’s contract, according to a source with knowledge of the terms:
1. Signing bonus: $35 million.
2. Basic salary in 2026: US$1.25 million, fully guaranteed.
3. Training bonus in 2026: $250,000, fully guaranteed but must be earned.
4. 2027 option bonus: US$30 million, fully guaranteed.
5. Basic salary in 2027: US$1,530,996, fully guaranteed.
6. Training bonus in 2027: $250,000, fully guaranteed but must be earned.
7. 2027 per-game roster bonus: $850,000 total, fully guaranteed but must be earned.
8. Base salary in 2028: US$18.837 million, injury guaranteed when signing, fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2028 waiver period.
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9. 2028 trial training bonus: US$250,000, injury guaranteed when signing, fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2028 exemption period.
10. Average roster bonus in 2028: Total US$850,000, injury guaranteed at signing, fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2028 waiver period.
11. 2029 option bonus: US$10 million, injury guaranteed at signing, fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2028 waiver period.
12. Base salary in 2029: $19.9 million, injury guaranteed at signing, fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2029 waiver period.
13. Trial bonus in 2029: US$250,000, injury guaranteed when signing, fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2029 exemption period.
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14. Average roster bonus per game in 2029: $850,000 in total, injury guaranteed at signing, fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2029 waiver period.
15. Base salary in 2030: $32.2 million.
16. 2030 workout bonus: $250,000.
17. 2030 roster bonuses per game: $850,000 total.
18. 2031 offseason roster bonus: $3 million, to be paid on the fifth day of the 2031 league year.
19. Base salary in 2031: $37.7 million.
20. 2031 workout bonus: $250,000.
21. 2031 per-game roster bonus: $850,000 total.
The total expenditure over six years is US$195,167,996, which works out to an average annual value of US$32,527,000 after signing. Taking into account $26,567,996 due in the first two years of the contract, the average amount of new funding is $42.15 million.
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The fully guaranteed bonus at the time of signing was US$69.13 million, and the injury guarantee at the time of signing was US$120.067 million.
The contract will pay $36.25 million in 2026 and $32.63 million in 2027. Combined with the $19.937 million payable in 2028, JSN will pay $88.817 million over three years. Technically, that gives him $62.24 million in the first year of his new deal.
The non-guaranteed years are well below the new currency average; these are not nonsense years designed to boost APY.
Yes, the four-year extension brings his contract to six years. But the trend for high-end receivers is to extend four years. Smith-Ngiba is in his fourth NFL season without the risk of injury and will cost just $2.715 million to play in 2026.
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This is a hidden benefit for teams that defer their first-round picks until after the fourth year of their rookie contracts. The team acquired the player’s services for a pittance in his fourth season, and the money lost by not renewing before the fourth year will never be recovered.
The correct outcome for any first-round pick who proves himself in three years is to get a contract before the fourth year begins. Other receivers like Chase and Justin Jefferson had to wait four years. JSN got his after three.
