Seahawks Face $40.3M Ultimatum Or Super Bowl MVP Walker May Walk

Smith-Njigba hasn’t ducked the money questions. In a WFAA interview cited by ESPN and NFL.com, he said he would “play this game for free” but added he is learning to be “a good businessman” and that players “need that check at the end of the day.” Days later, he told reporters he believes he should be the highest-paid wide receiver based on what he gives “to the game and the community.”

The quote package tells the story: he loves ball, knows what he produced, and understands the market he’s walking into — one where Chase and Justin Jefferson have already reset the position’s pay scale.

From Rookie Pennies To True No. 1 Money

The sticker shock in Seattle starts with what they just got for cheap. Smith-Njigba’s four-year rookie contract is valued at around $14.4 million, with a 2025 base salary in the mid–$1 million range and a 2026 base salary under $3 million. For that, they got first-team All-Pro play, OPOY, and the seventh-most receiving yards in a season in league history.

Seattle also holds a fifth-year option for 2027 expected to land in the low– to mid–$20 million range based on current option projections, but that’s a one-year mechanism, not a long-term solution. Every season, they let him play under the rookie framework, which increases his leverage if his production holds.

Why Smith-Njigba Can Afford To Be Patient

Publicly, Smith-Njigba has downplayed urgency. “I’m really not too pressed right now to get it done. I know my time is coming, and when we get it done, it’s going to be a great deal. God’s timing is perfect timing,” he said in comments carried by NFL.com. The leverage behind that calm tone is structural. As a first-round pick, he has a fifth-year option for 2027, which gives Seattle control but also allows his camp to play the long game.

Rams receiver Puka Nacua, a Day 3 pick, has no option year; general manager Les Snead has already talked publicly about finding a “win-win solution” on an early extension. Nacua’s timeline is compressed, and whatever number he lands on will become another data point for Smith-Njigba’s side of the table — even if JSN never says that out loud.

Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III Heads Toward Free Agency

While Seattle works through receiver economics, the player who walked off with Super Bowl LX MVP is headed toward the open market. The Seahawks beat the New England Patriots 29–13 in Super Bowl LX, and Kenneth Walker III was named MVP of that game. ESPN’s free-agency preview on Walker makes it clear he’s not expected to receive the franchise or transition tag, positioning him as one of the top offensive players available when the market opens on March 11.

If he signs elsewhere, ESPN notes he would join a very short list of Super Bowl MVPs who changed teams immediately after winning the award.

Schneider’s Message: “It’s About Our 70”

General manager John Schneider hasn’t sugarcoated the broader picture. Speaking about Walker’s future, he said, “We’d love to have Ken back, and he knows this better than anybody – it’s about our 70 and our collective and what that’s going to look like.” That’s classic cap language: they value the player, but the full 70-man roster construction comes first.

Several local reports, including Field Gulls and other Seattle outlets, have emphasized that the front office’s offseason priority list starts with extensions for Smith-Njigba and cornerback Devon Witherspoon. Walker’s next deal, by contrast, is framed around “fit” and “price point” rather than “must get done.”

Seahawks Have Room — Just Not For Everyone

On paper, the Seahawks aren’t a cash-poor champion. Cap analyses from outlets like Field Gulls and national cap sites put their available 2026 space in the tens of millions, with some estimates ranking them among the league’s top tier for flexibility. But that space is already spoken for in concept.

They need room for new money for Smith-Njigba and Witherspoon, possible restructuring or replacement-level planning at quarterback, and commitments to a defense that just carried them through a deep playoff run under coach Mike Macdonald. Once you slot in a top-of-market receiver deal and a premium corner contract, the margin for a strong second running-back contract shrinks quickly.

Running Backs Still On The Wrong Side Of The Market

Walker isn’t alone in feeling the sting of the current pay structure. Recent league-wide free-agency and contract tiers show running backs lumped into mid-level buckets while receivers, edge rushers, and even some off-ball linebackers push into quarterback-adjacent money. ESPN’s offensive free-agency rankings highlight Walker as one of the better backs available, but they frame his future around how much value teams are willing to put on his position rather than how many trophies he just helped win.

Local coverage has repeatedly noted that Seattle is unlikely to allocate a large one-year franchise tag number at running back when it has other premium spots to lock down long-term.

The Market Smith-Njigba Is Walking Into

Smith-Njigba’s leverage is stacked on recent explosions at the top of the non-quarterback market. Chase’s $40.25 million per year, Jefferson’s $35 million per year, and a wave of massive deals for defensive stars culminated in Micah Parsons becoming the highest-paid non-QB after his trade to Green Bay, landing an average that eclipses previous benchmarks.

Analysts have already suggested that JSN’s combination of age, production, and timing puts him in a position to either match or surpass Chase’s number if both sides are willing to go there. Every reset at wide receiver, and whatever the Rams ultimately do with Nacua, increases the odds that Smith-Njigba’s extension will be one of the next deals that forces other teams to reevaluate what a true No. 1 costs.

The Ultimatum In Plain Terms

So here’s where it lands. The Seahawks have a 24-year-old Offensive Player of the Year who just led the league in receiving yards and a Super Bowl MVP running back heading into free agency. Their general manager has publicly framed the offseason around building “our 70,” and multiple reports say the front office’s first priority is securing new deals for Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Devon Witherspoon. Smith-Njigba has stated plainly that he wants to be the highest-paid wideout in the NFL, which, by definition, means a contract that exceeds $40.25 million per year.

Kenneth Walker III, meanwhile, is set to test a running back market that rarely rewards his position the way the receiver market now does. In a hard-cap league, that’s not just a storyline — it’s the ultimatum Seattle has to answer.

Sources:
ESPN: “Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Believe I deserve to be highest-paid WR”
NFL.com: “Seahawks’ Jaxon Smith-Njigba not ‘pressed’ but believes he deserves to be highest-paid WR”
ESPN: “Will Seahawks re-sign Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III?”
Flashscore: “Seahawks defeat Patriots 29-13 to win Super Bowl LX”
CBS Sports: “Seahawks star makes $40.3 million contract demand”
ESPN: “Micah Parsons traded by Cowboys to Packers, gets record contract”