Jaxon Smith-Njigba caught 12 passes for 134 yards in Seattle’s 17–14 overtime loss at Denver to open Week 6, and nobody behind him kept pace. The Seahawks receiver leads the NFL with 717 receiving yards, 137 more than New Orleans’ Chris Olave (580). Through Week 5 the gap was 46 yards, 583 to 537.
Olave caught four passes for 43 yards and a touchdown in the Saints’ 34–27 win over the Giants. Dallas’ CeeDee Lamb had nine catches for 70 yards in the 23–13 loss at Green Bay and is three yards behind Olave at 577, with Atlanta’s Drake London fourth at 550.
NFL receiving yards leaders after Week 6
| Rank | Player | Team | G | Rec | Targets | Yds | Yds/G | Avg | TD | Long | Week 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA | 6 | 49 | 65 | 717 | 119.5 | 14.6 | 7 | 82 | 12-134 |
| 2 | Chris Olave | NO | 6 | 43 | 61 | 580 | 96.7 | 13.5 | 2 | 47 | 4-43, 1 TD |
| 3 | CeeDee Lamb | DAL | 6 | 48 | 69 | 577 | 96.2 | 12.0 | 4 | 49 | 9-70 |
| 4 | Drake London | ATL | 6 | 31 | 47 | 550 | 91.7 | 17.7 | 0 | 68 | 4-62 |
| 5 | Christian Watson | GB | 6 | 29 | 48 | 538 | 89.7 | 18.6 | 6 | 81 | 3-64 |
| 6 | Matthew Golden | GB | 6 | 30 | 57 | 501 | 83.5 | 16.7 | 3 | 50 | 6-104, 1 TD |
| 7 | Malik Nabers | NYG | 6 | 41 | 61 | 494 | 82.3 | 12.0 | 2 | 46 | 12-165 |
| 8 | Davante Adams | LAR | 6 | 30 | 49 | 480 | 80.0 | 16.0 | 4 | 64 | 3-39 |
| 9 | Zay Flowers | BAL | 5 | 32 | 42 | 471 | 94.2 | 14.7 | 2 | 54 | 6-66 |
| 10 | Tetairoa McMillan | CAR | 5 | 32 | 48 | 471 | 94.2 | 14.7 | 2 | 32 | 6-86 |
| 11 | George Pickens | DAL | 6 | 33 | 52 | 428 | 71.3 | 13.0 | 1 | 53 | 6-73 |
| 12 | Tee Higgins | CIN | 5 | 27 | 43 | 423 | 84.6 | 15.7 | 1 | 29 | Bye |
| 13 | Mike Evans | SF | 6 | 27 | 39 | 420 | 70.0 | 15.6 | 3 | 54 | 3-94 |
| 14 | Garrett Wilson | NYJ | 6 | 35 | 48 | 418 | 69.7 | 11.9 | 3 | 32 | 4-44 |
| 15 | Puka Nacua | LAR | 4 | 37 | 52 | 417 | 104.3 | 11.3 | 1 | 43 | 6-80 |
Smith-Njigba is averaging 119.5 yards per game. The Rams’ Puka Nacua, at 104.3 across four games, is the only other player above 100 a game, and Olave is next at 96.7. Smith-Njigba also leads the league with seven touchdown catches, one more than Green Bay’s Christian Watson, and shares the lead in receptions at 49 with Arizona tight end Trey McBride. Lamb has the most targets, 69, to Smith-Njigba’s 65.
Who has led after each week
| After week | Leader | Yds | Second | Yds | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chris Olave (NO) | 182 | Zay Flowers (BAL) | 150 | 32 |
| 2 | Jaxon Smith-Njigba (SEA) | 277 | Chris Olave (NO) | 268 | 9 |
| 3 | Jaxon Smith-Njigba (SEA) | 405 | Chris Olave (NO) | 375 | 30 |
| 4 | CeeDee Lamb (DAL) | 498 | Chris Olave (NO) | 491 | 7 |
| 5 | Jaxon Smith-Njigba (SEA) | 583 | Chris Olave (NO) | 537 | 46 |
| 6 | Jaxon Smith-Njigba (SEA) | 717 | Chris Olave (NO) | 580 | 137 |
Olave led after Week 1 on the back of 182 yards in Detroit, Smith-Njigba took over after Weeks 2 and 3, and Lamb was briefly first after a 17-catch, 189-yard game at Houston in Week 4. Smith-Njigba went back in front in Week 5 and is now further clear than any leader has been all season. Olave has 89 yards across his last two games after 491 in the first four.
How the top 10 moved in Week 6
| Player | Team | Yds through Week 5 | Rank through Week 5 | Week 6 yds | Yds now | Rank now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA | 583 | 1 | 134 | 717 | 1 |
| Chris Olave | NO | 537 | 2 | 43 | 580 | 2 |
| CeeDee Lamb | DAL | 507 | 3 | 70 | 577 | 3 |
| Drake London | ATL | 488 | 4 | 62 | 550 | 4 |
| Christian Watson | GB | 474 | 5 | 64 | 538 | 5 |
| Matthew Golden | GB | 397 | 9 | 104 | 501 | 6 |
| Malik Nabers | NYG | 329 | 17 | 165 | 494 | 7 |
| Davante Adams | LAR | 441 | 6 | 39 | 480 | 8 |
| Zay Flowers | BAL | 405 | 8 | 66 | 471 | 9 |
| Tetairoa McMillan | CAR | 385 | 10 | 86 | 471 | 10 |
The Giants’ Malik Nabers made the biggest jump, from 17th to seventh, with 12 catches for 165 yards against New Orleans, his third straight 100-yard game. Green Bay’s Matthew Golden had 104 yards against Dallas and moved from ninth to sixth, which puts him behind teammate Watson (538). They are the only teammates in the top 10, with 1,039 yards between them. Cincinnati’s Tee Higgins, seventh through Week 5, fell out of the top 10 during the Bengals’ bye.
100-yard receiving games
| Week | 100-yard receiving games |
|---|---|
| 1 | 7 |
| 2 | 10 |
| 3 | 9 |
| 4 | 14 |
| 5 | 11 |
| 6 | 5 |
| Total | 56 |
Week 6 had only five 100-yard receiving games, the fewest of any week this season: Nabers (165), Smith-Njigba (134), Houston’s Jaylin Noel (107), Golden (104) and the Jets’ Omar Cooper Jr. (103). Smith-Njigba has five of the 56, more than anyone else; his only game under 100 was 76 yards against the Chargers in Week 4. Golden, Nabers, Olave and Lamb have three each.
The Week 7 schedule for the leaders
| Player | Team | Week 7 | Kickoff (ET) | Cairo time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA | vs. Kansas City | Sun, Oct. 25, 8:20 p.m. | Mon 03:20 |
| Chris Olave | NO | vs. Pittsburgh (Paris) | Sun, 9:30 a.m. | Sun 16:30 |
| CeeDee Lamb | DAL | at Philadelphia | Mon, Oct. 26, 8:15 p.m. | Tue 03:15 |
| Drake London | ATL | vs. San Francisco | Sun, 1:00 p.m. | Sun 20:00 |
| Christian Watson | GB | at Detroit | Sun, 4:25 p.m. | Sun 23:25 |
| Matthew Golden | GB | at Detroit | Sun, 4:25 p.m. | Sun 23:25 |
| Malik Nabers | NYG | at Houston | Sun, 1:00 p.m. | Sun 20:00 |
| Davante Adams | LAR | at Las Vegas | Sun, 4:25 p.m. | Sun 23:25 |
| Zay Flowers | BAL | vs. Cincinnati | Sun, 1:00 p.m. | Sun 20:00 |
| Tetairoa McMillan | CAR | vs. Tampa Bay | Sun, 1:00 p.m. | Sun 20:00 |
Olave is first up of the chasers, on Sunday morning in Paris against Pittsburgh. Smith-Njigba gets the Sunday night game at home against the unbeaten Chiefs, and Lamb plays last, on Monday night in Philadelphia.
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