What Jaxon Smith-Njigba Said About NFL's Double Typo on OPOY Award

It's been an exciting and equally humbling last year for Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

Smith-Njigba broke multiple Seahawks receiving records in just his third NFL season, led the league in receiving yards (1,793), won a Super Bowl title and was voted the AP Offensive Player of the Year. But ever since that award was revealed, Smith-Njigba has received unintentional disrespect.

It started with comedian Druski mispronouncing his name at the awards show, putting a damper on a career-defining night for Smith-Njigba. Now, he finally got his award from the league, but there were two major typos on it.

#Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba received his Offensive Player of the Year trophy … but the plaque says Defensive Player of the Year. 🤦‍♂️

“It’s getting disrespectful at this point.” pic.twitter.com/mzDlTvACDk
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) May 19, 2026

The trophy had "2025 Defensive Player of the Year" etched into it, and "The Year" appeared to have no space between the words. It was a double mistake to a prized item for one the NFL's best players.

Smith-Njigba posted his reaction in an Instagram story, stating, "I really want to expose them, though. It's getting disrespectful, guys." He then pointed to the lack of a space between the final two words.

"One word? Man."

The Seahawks star followed it up with a second post that said, "Just keep the award at this point. Leave it in the history books tho."

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy provided comment to The Athletic, stating they are sending Smith-Njigba a new award, but the damage has already been done at this point.

Jan 25, 2026; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams during the first half in the 2026 NFC Championship Game at Lumen Field. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

"The league made the mistake. We sincerely apologize to Jaxon for the error and are in the process of creating and shipping him a new trophy," McCarthy told The Athletic. "Of course, like the teams he played against this year, we know how great an offensive player he is. We just had a problem spelling it."

Seahawks players don't win these kinds of top-tier, league-wide awards very often. Running back Shaun Alexander was the last player to win the OPOY, and that was back in 2005. No player has ever won Defensive Player of the Year despite the team having multiple prolific defenders in its history.

Smith-Njigba is the first Seahawks player to hold the AP DPOY award, even if it's illegitimate. That doubles the disrespect to the franchise as a whole.

After getting a massive contract extension this offseason, Smith-Njigba will look to repeat as the best offensive player in football in 2026.

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