Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba has increased his production to more than justify his market-leading contract.
Through three games, Smith-Njigba has 27 catches for 405 yards and six touchdowns. Entering Sunday, he led the league in all three categories.
He also has at least 100 yards receiving and a touchdown in each game. With 100 or more yards and another touchdown catch against the Chargers, Smith-Njigba will match Randy Moss as the only players in NFL history to ever do that, via NBC Sports research.
Moss accomplished it in 2007, his epic first season with the Patriots. If he keeps it up, he could be the first back-to-back NFL Offensive Player of the Year since Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk won it three times in a row, from 1999 through 2001.
If Smith-Njigba wins it again, hopefully the trophy won’t have a typo.
Chargers Clips
The Chargers will not have safety Derwin James today against the Seahawks.
James is inactive with his hamstring injury after being listed as questionable.
The other four players the Chargers listed as questionable are dressed. Backup quarterback Trey Lance (groin), wide receiver Ladd McConkey (foot), safety Elijah Molden (hamstring) and cornerback Donte Jackson (concussion) are active.
The team’s other inactives are quarterback Dj Uiagalelei, offensive lineman Alex Harkey, offensive lineman Kayode Awosika (fibula), tight end Charlie Kolar (forearm), wide receiver Brenen Thompson (quadriceps) and defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson (hamstring). Uiagalelei will serve as the emergency third quarterback.
The Seahawks will not have safety Ty Okada for a fourth consecutive game due to a hamstring injury. The team listed him as questionable.
Rodney Thomas II will start for Okada again.
Cornerback Avery Smith, linebacker Chazz Surratt (calf), wide receiver Montorie Foster Jr., tight end Nick Kallerup, nose tackle Brandon Pili and quarterback Jalen Milroe are the other inactives. Milroe will serve as the emergency third quarterback.
Seahawks running back Jadarian Price not only will miss Sunday’s game but at least the three games after that.
On Saturday, the Seahawks announced they placed Price on injured reserve with a chest injury.
Price initially injured his chest in Week 2 before aggravating it in Wednesday’s practice.
The final pick of the first round started each of the team’s first three games but has only 119 yards on 28 carries with two lost fumbles. He played 35.8 percent of offensive snaps while splitting time with Emanuel Wilson and George Holani.
The Seahawks will get Zach Charbonnet back at some point, having opened his 21-day practice window this week.
Seattle signed running back Velus Jones Jr. off the practice squad on Saturday.
The Seahawks also elevated cornerback Trevon Diggs and safety Maxen Hook from the practice squad for Sunday’s game.
Week 4 is here, and five teams are still looking for their first victory of 2026.
The Dolphins, Texans, Titans, Chargers, and Buccaneers are all 0-3. Only seven teams (most recently, the 2025 Texans) have made the playoffs after an 0-3 start.
None of the five teams play each other this weekend, which means all five could still be winless come Monday. Any that land at 0-4 will be facing a steep climb to the postseason.
Only one team in NFL history has qualified for the playoffs after starting 0-4. In 1992, the Chargers under first-year coach Bobby Ross turned it around and secured the AFC West crown. The Chargers won 11 of their 12 final games of the season.
The Chargers advanced through the wild-card round with a 17-0 win over the Chiefs, who had swept the Chargers during the regular season. The next week, the Dolphins eliminated the Chargers with a 31-0 blowout.
With 17 games and seven playoff spots per conference, it’s easier than ever for a team to turn it around after an 0-4 start. Still, many 0-4 teams start that way for a reason; they’re not very good. The 1992 Chargers were much better than their early-season record indicated, and they made it all the way to the final eight.
The Chargers have ruled out four players and list five others as questionable.
Safety Derwin James Jr. (hamstring), quarterback Trey Lance (groin), wide receiver Ladd McConkey (foot), safety Elijah Molden (hamstring) and cornerback Donte Jackson (concussion) are questionable.
Lance was active for the Week 3 game after being questionable. The Chargers have DJ Uiagalelei behind Lance on the depth chart.
Lance, James, Molden and McConkey were limited participants Friday. Jackson was a full participant.
The Chargers ruled out left guard Kayode Awosika (fibula), tight end Charlie Kolar (forearm), wide receiver Brenen Thompson (quadriceps) and defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson (hamstring).
Running back Keaton Mitchell, who wore a walking boot this week, was a full participant Friday and has no injury designation.
The Seahawks will face the Chargers without rookie running back Jadarian Price.
Head coach Mike Macdonald told reporters on Friday that Price has been ruled out for Sunday’s game. Price aggravated a chest injury during Wednesday’s practice and did not practice on Thursday to foreshadow Friday’s decision to hold the first-round pick out.
Emanuel Wilson and George Holani are the other backs on the 53-man roster. The Seahawks could also elevate Velus Jones from the practice squad.
Macdonald also updated the outlook for safeties Julian Love and Ty Okada. Love is set to return from his calf injury while Okada will be listed as questionable to play due to a hamstring injury.
Seahawks running back Jadarian Price was downgraded to out of practice Thursday, missing the session with a chest injury.
Price was limited in Wednesday’s practice.
He has 28 carries for 119 yards and four receptions for 21 yards, as well as two fumbles.
Running back Zach Charbonnet (knee) was limited in his return to practice. The Seahawks opened his 21-day return-to-practice window on Thursday as he works his way back from the ACL tear that ended his 2025 season in the divisional round of the playoffs.
Safety Ty Okada (hamstring) returned to limited work after sitting out Wednesday.
Offensive Grey Zabel (groin) and defensive tackle Jarran Reed (foot) had full participation after limited work Wednesday.
The rest of the report remained the same, with running back George Holani (rib) and safety Julian Love (calf) still limited.
Chargers offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel got a vote of confidence from head coach Jim Harbaugh on Wednesday, but he knows that the status quo on offense isn’t going to work.
The Chargers lost to the Bills last Sunday despite being plus-four in the turnover column and McDaniel said at a Thursday press conference that “we were the reason we lost a football game.” They had five turnovers over the first two games, so the unit had a big hand in those losses as well.
McDaniel said he hasn’t lost faith in the offense and thinks he has “a much better understanding” of what can bring out better play in quarterback Justin Herbert, but he acknowledged that results on the field are the only thing that matter.
“There has been improvement, but does anyone care? No, but we better improve. . . . I’m not trying to have moral victories or anything like that,” McDaniel said. “It’s steadfast that there’s things that we’ve done in the past three games that is active participation in losing the game. Flat out, our jobs are to improve everything. I’m not living in hope, I’m living in reality.”
It won’t be the easiest week to get on track as the Chargers will be in Seattle to face the Seahawks they try to bounce back from the end of their 12-game losing streak. McDaniel and the Chargers need to find a way, however, or the next vote of confidence may never come.
Seahawks safety Julian Love returned to practice on Wednesday. He was a limited participant.
Love strained a calf muscle at Thursday’s practice and missed Sunday’s loss to the Commanders.
He has two interceptions in two games.
The Seahawks practiced without safety Ty Okada (hamstring).
Running back George Holani (rib), running back Jadarian Price (chest), defensive tackle Jarran Reed (foot), defensive tackle Leonard Williams (rest) and guard Grey Zabel (groin) were limited.
Wide receiver Rashid Shaheed (hip), defensive tackle Brandon Pili (neck) and safety Nick Emmanwori (ankle) were full participants.
Before the 2024 draft, former Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh had plenty of glowing things to say about former Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
So it’s no surprise that Jim Harbaugh had many positive things to say about McCarthy to Harbaugh’s brother, John, before John’s Giants traded for McCarthy.
“I mean, John called me and asked me,” Harbaugh told reporters on Wednesday. “I said, you know, John, I love you. I love J.J. I think you guys would be . . .’ so, really, I’m telling you the same thing that I told my brother.”
For whatever reason, things didn’t work for McCarthy in Minnesota. But they worked for McCarthy in Michigan. Maybe McCarthy responds better to the Harbaugh rah-rah style. Maybe McCarthy’s second act with the Giants will go better than his first NFL stint.
However it goes, McCarthy needed a fresh start. And playing for Jim Harbaugh’s brother may be the next best thing to playing for Jim Harbaugh.
