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MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - MARCH 22: Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba watches Carlos Alcaraz of Spain play Sebastian Korda of the United States on Day 6 of the Miami Open Presented by Itau at Hard Rock Stadium on March 22, 2026 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
Picking up the Offensive Player of the Year award should have been about as routine and uncontroversial an activity as Jaxon Smith-Njigba has done over the past year en route to helping the Seattle Seahawks win and dominate in Super Bowl LX 29-13.
However, the award has been littered with controversy. Firstly, the presenter of the award – comedian “Druski” – deliberately mispronounced Smith-Njigba’s name and replaced it with a racial slur.
Then, the league inscribed “Defensive” instead of “Offensive” Player of the Year on his trophy plate that was sent to his house earlier this week.
And whilst these events certainly would not have thrilled the winner of said trophy, it also caused a ruffle in the feathers of his brother, Canaan Smith-Njigba, who took to X to speak his mind about the league failing to administer his prize in the correct manner.
The NFL quickly collected a fine for the dunk celebration, then used those same images for promotion. The Offensive Player of the Year was turned into a comedy segment with Druski, minimizing an award earned through elite performance and hard work. NFL Honors never acknowledged
“The Offensive Player of the Year was turned into a comedy segment with Druski, minimizing an award earned through elite performance and hard work.” Canaan Smith-Njigba wrote on social media. “NFL Honors never acknowledged the poor representation of one of the league’s top individual awards.”
“The “prestigious” ceremony didn’t even air the pre-recorded acceptance speech.” Canaan continued. “After months to prepare and ship the award, the only offensive player selected received a Defensive Player of the Year trophy.”
“At some point, professionalism, respect, and attention to detail should matter.”
It does certainly feel like a comedy of errors coming in for the award at this point; the mispronounced name of Sierra Leonian origin that specifically means a lot to both of the brothers, the inability to air the acceptance speech at the ceremony, and most recently the wrongly-inscribed trophy.
It is easy enough for the league to make one mistake, and one can make the point that the first issue regarding the name pronunciation is on Druski, not the league itself – although to some extent the NFL is responsible for anyone and everyone they choose to present an award.
Three mistakes however, feels like incompetence and a lack of care.
Ideally, the former 20th overall pick will be hoping for much of the same: an OPOY trophy – hopefully this time with fewer hiccups – and a second Super Bowl ring.
The Ohio State alum managed 119 receptions and 1,793 yards along with 10 touchdowns. To replicate that again in 2026 would constitute another monstrously successful season, but given the natural competitiveness of the league’s most elite athletes at the most highly-contested positions, he may even be looking to surpass his 2025 numbers this coming year.
Smith-Njigba still has a way to go before coming close to breaking records. He will need 30 more receptions to match Michael Thomas‘ 149 catches in 2019 and Calvin Johnson’s 1,964 receiving yards – although he will have an extra game to do it in with the regular season format having changed to 17 games in 2021.
Daniel Arwas Daniel Arwas is a sports writer who covers the NFL for Heavy.com. Daniel began his career in sports writing in 2022 and has covered the NFL and college football for Gridiron Heroics and The Hammer. More about Daniel Arwas
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