There's no slam dunking in football. That's why Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba was penalized when he pretended to dunk on a goalpost following a touchdown on Monday Night Football against the Texans in Week 7.
Smith-Njigba scored a first-quarter touchdown and immediately threw it down. The only thing quicker than his dunk was the flag the official threw after he got posterized. Upon further review, the official did have his arms straight up in the air and was in a legal guarding position, so it was not an and-one.
#Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba scores the touchdown and dunks the ball in the goalpost after. Vintage Jimmy Graham, unfortunate that it has to be called a penalty😅 pic.twitter.com/1rtM0NEH3b
— Arye Pulli (@AryePulliNFL) October 21, 2025
The slam dunk move was banned a decade ago after a Jimmy Graham celebration led to a delay in a game because the uprights got messed up and had to be adjusted.
So now JSN isn't allowed to dunk on referees. Though when you're playing as well as he is this season, maybe you should be allowed to do banned celebrations.
Smith-Njigba entered the game against the Texans leading the NFL in receiving yards. And now he leads the league in dunks, too.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jaxon Smith-Njigba Penalized for Putting This Ref on a Poster.
