The Seattle Seahawks made a big move by signing star wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba to a record contract extension worth $168.6 million over four years.
San Francisco 49ers cornerback Deommodore Lenoir took to social media to troll JSN after the news came out.
Lenoir shared some statistics on his Instagram story about how JSN, who was named the AP’s Offensive Player of the Year, fared against him when the two were matched up against one another. In the Week 1 matchup between the Niners and Seahawks, JSN had no catches against Lenoir and the same was true in the Week 18 matchup. Smith-Njigba only had one catch for 4 yards in the divisional round meeting between the two teams, so it seems like Lenoir knows how to keep him in check.
This is not the first time the cornerback has taken aim at JSN. He has gone after him on social media in the past, and it is clear there’s no love lost between the two players. The fun part is that we are going to see the two players square off for quite a few years now. Lenoir signed a five-year, $92 million extension with the Niners in 2024, so he is going to be with the Niners for a while as well.
It will be interesting to see if the 49ers choose to have Lenoir shadow Smith-Njigba in future meetings against Seattle. Head coach Kyle Shanahan had former cornerback Charvarius Ward do that against former Seahawks receiver D.K. Metcalf, so maybe he will do it again down the road.
That would really make for some must-see TV as those two would be jawing and talking trash the entire game. Based off past results, maybe that’s what the 49ers should do to try and take away Seattle’s most potent threat on offense.
The former University of Oregon product had a solid season with the Niners last season, but he didn’t exactly take a step forward and become an elite, shutdown corner. Lenoir was solid, but when the Niners gave him that big deal, they may have been hoping there was still more in his game.
Lenoir is the least of San Francisco’s problems right now when it comes to the secondary. The team has to feel solid about Lenoir and nickel corner Upton Stout, who had a nice rookie campaign last season, but there are some question marks with Renardo Green. The Niners brought it free-agent cornerback Nate Hobbs, so maybe he can address any deficiencies at the position.
San Francisco clearly needs some help at safety as well. Malik Mustapha, Ji’Ayir Brown, and Marques Sigle were OK, but largely inconsistent last season. Maybe the 49ers will add a veteran into the mix to provide some stability for that group.
The Niners have to catch up with Seattle after the Seahawks won the Super Bowl last season, so expect the rivalry and matchup between Lenoir and Smith-Njigba to play a role in determining future contests.