How 5th-year options on Smith-Njigba, Witherspoon set up Seahawks for long term
As usual, GM John Schneider is playing the long game with what at its face looks like a shorter-term move. He did it with Charles Cross.
The Seahawks are going to have their two best, young players for a while. What looks like a shorter-term move for 2027 appears to be the Super Bowl champions’ idea to secure them long beyond that. The Seahawks announced Friday night they are using their fifth-year contract options for 2027 on All-Pro wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the NFL offensive player of the year this past season, and on three-time Pro Bowl cornerback Devon Witherspoon.
They were Seattle’s first-round choices in the 2023 draft. The moves keep Smith-Njigba and Witherspoon from possibly entering free agency following the final years of their rookie contracts, the 2026 season. The moves do not prevent the Seahawks from extending both of them with long-term extensions for 2028 and beyond.
In fact, it may prove to further the chances for that. The league’s collective bargaining agreement provides teams the chance to keep first-round picks for one extra season beyond the standard four-year contracts each draft choice in any round one through seven gets every year. The cost of that fifth-year option is a guaranteed, one-year deal.
It’s at an average of the top salaries at each position — with value tiers that factor exemplary performance (Pro Bowl selections) and playing time over the first three seasons of an NFL career. Because he has been originally voted into at least two Pro Bowls, Witherspoon gets a top-tier value for his fifth-year option. That for cornerbacks in 2027 is $21.
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