The Atlanta Falcons will face a difficult test against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 14, as the 9-3 Seahawks have won six of their last seven games. For a Jeff Ulbrich-led defense that has started to fall apart recently, having to slow down Sam Darnold and the Seattle offense will be a very tall task.
For as impressive as Darnold has been, his presence has done wonders for the emergence of third-year receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba. The 23-year-old leads the NFL with 1,336 receiving yards, which is why Falcons' star safety Jessie Bates III knows slowing down the surging wideout won't come easy.
Bates also mentioned his rapid ascent to the elite tier of pass-catchers, which almost happened overnight. JSN shined at the end of last season, but after Seattle traded DK Metcalf and cut Tyler Lockett this offseason, he was finally being given the opportunity to be the Seahawks' top receiver.
Jessie Bates knows the Falcons will struggle in containing Jaxon Smith-Njigba
The 2023 first-round pick out of Ohio State has been unlocked with Darnold starting in place of Geno Smith that's seen JSN emerge as an Offensive Player of the Year frontrunner. But a matchup with A.J. Terrell won't come easy, but the veteran cornerback has struggled across his last few games.
He's nearly 200 receiving yards ahead of George Pickens, who is second in receiving, and is one of just three players to have already surpassed the 1,000-yard threshold. And he's doing this for a Seattle offense that is averaging nearly 30 points per game and totaling over 350 yards per game.
The craziest part about Smith-Njigba's breakout season is that Week 13 was the first game all season he was held under 75 receiving yards. The Pro Bowler caught just two passes for 23 yards last weekend against the Minnesota Vikings, and Seattle still blanked the Vikings 26-0 despite a rough outing from Darnold.
Between Terrell and Mike Hughes, the pass defense has started to drop off. Tyrod Taylor threw a 52-yard touchdown to Adonai Mitchell against the Jets, while the second-year receiver's logged eight passes for a career-high 102 receiving yards and that touchdown in another pathetic Falcons' defeat.
Klint Kubiak's offense runs though JSN through the air, but the Seahawks' potent run game is also alarming. Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet will likely run wild against this defensive line, but Bates knows that he'll face an uphill battle in neutralizing their biggest home run threat on Sunday.