How the Bears defense handled Jaxon Smith-Njigba in a win over the Seahawks originally appeared Sports news. Add sports news Preferred resource by clicking here.
While wins and losses are the primary metric used by evaluators to determine whether a week has been successful in the NFL, individual matchups are just as important.
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The final game of Week 9 provided a magical game for NFL hardcores – Seahawks star Jaxon Smith-Njigba against whoever the Bears lined up against him.
Smith-Njigba is the best receiver in football. Since the beginning of last year, his place on this ladder was not in question. However, there is a case, albeit a quiet one, that Chicago made it look more ordinary than ever in a 34-17 victory.
Here’s how the Bears filled in for Smith-Njigba to propel Ben Johnson’s side to a famous victory over Seattle.
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How the Bears defense found the answer to the Jaxon Smith-Njigba problem
Chicago’s defense was unable to disrupt Smith-Njigba’s impact in the first half. He was the lone light in Seattle’s offense through two quarters, accounting for 92 of Sam Darnold’s first 94 yards.
Smith-Njigba found the end zone with one of his patented double moves, stripping Tyrique Stevenson. He made Ceylon Johnson look equally stupid in the relationship before.
Smith-Njigba, who rushed for nearly 200 yards per half, seemed like the most likely candidate to pose any threat to Chicago’s secondary. But as the second half wore on, Smith-Njigba found it increasingly difficult to influence the game.
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After making four catches for 92 yards in the first half, the Ohio State product was held without a catch (or a target) until Seattle’s final offensive drive.
Smith-Njigba may have been a bit unlucky to get that distinction. He brought the Seahawks to the top of the goal line late in the third quarter, only to be whistled for what appeared to be a questionable offensive pass interference call.
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Despite this, Seattle was unable to get Smith-Njigba going in the contest the way it intended. Some of that was Darnold’s doing; struggled for most of the contest.
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Chicago’s high school has stepped up in a big way. So did the defensive line; Jeffrey Simmons looked like the best player on the court for large parts of Monday’s action. The Mississippi State graduate recorded one sack, two tackles for loss and six tackles in his Bears debut.
Darnold felt the pressure early and often Monday night. Smith-Njigba had the minerals to disappoint his markers. But Darnold’s inability to consistently find him in the second half limited the Seahawks’ offensive enthusiasm. The result was a rather lackluster Smith-Njigba performance, at least by his standards.
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