There was plenty of consternation about the Seahawks' 3-3 start to the season. The offense couldn't stop turning the ball over. The running game had no juice.
The defense wasn't quite back to last year's elite level. These guys were really the reigning champions? With Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III coming to town, all those issues would be on display under the bright "Sunday Night Football" lights.
The Seahawks answered them and then some in a 20-3 shellacking. The Chiefs didn't reach the red zone once, the first time that's ever happened in a Patrick Mahomes start. Walker, the league's leading rusher, had just been 36 yards on the ground.
Seattle looked very much like the dominant unit it was at the end of last year, and no one was more dominant than Jaxon Smith-Njigba. He leads off our six lessons learned from Week 7. On a field full of stars, and with Walker's return taking up most of the spotlight pregame, Jaxon Smith-Njigba took the spotlight back: nine catches, 150 yards, one touchdown.
He roasted anyone lined up against him. Smith-Njigba is too quick to jam at the line and an absurdly smooth route runner. Once he's past you, he's gone.
And once he has the ball in his hands, he's hard to bring down, with a mix of jukes, vision, craftiness and strength to get past the defender guarding him. And Smith-Njigba is doing it while carrying an immense load. He has 50.2% of Seattle's receiving yards this year.
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