Shaheed is in an excellent position for a starting job after the Saints waited until the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft to select a wide receiver, taking Bub Means at No. 170 overall. Shaheed worked his way into a starting role as an undrafted rookie in the second half of 2022, and he then entered 2023 as the Saints' No. 3 receiver behind Chris Olave and Michael Thomas. While Thomas missed the final seven games of last season with an injury, Shaheed dealt with an injury of his own during that stretch and never really progressed to a full starter's workload. With Thomas gone and not replaced, Shaheed is in better position than ever before to pile up snaps/routes/targets, though his value on special teams as both a kick and punt returner could offer part of the explanation for New Orleans limiting his workload on offense even when the other WR options have been lacking. A.T. Perry and Cedrick Wilson look like the top candidates for wideout snaps after Olave and Shaheed this year.
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ACTIVELatest Rashid Shaheed news
Receiving
| Year | Team | GP | REC | TGTS | YDS | AVG | TDS | LNG | YAC | YDS/G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | NO | 15 | 46 | 75 | 719 | 16 | 5 | 58 | 151 | 48 |
| 2022 | NO | 12 | 28 | 34 | 488 | 17 | 2 | 68 | 176 | 41 |
Rushing
Shaheed is in an excellent position for a starting job after the Saints waited until the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft to select a wide receiver, taking Bub Means at No. 170 overall. Shaheed worked his way into a starting role as an undrafted rookie in the second half of 2022, and he then entered 2023 as the Saints' No. 3 receiver behind Chris Olave and Michael Thomas. While Thomas missed the final seven games of last season with an injury, Shaheed dealt with an injury of his own during that stretch and never really progressed to a full starter's workload. With Thomas gone and not replaced, Shaheed is in better position than ever before to pile up snaps/routes/targets, though his value on special teams as both a kick and punt returner could offer part of the explanation for New Orleans limiting his workload on offense even when the other WR options have been lacking. A.T. Perry and Cedrick Wilson look like the top candidates for wideout snaps after Olave and Shaheed this year.
The Saints recently tendered Shaheed to a one-year, $985,000 contract, Matthew Paras of The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports. The decision to bring Shaheed at less than $1 million for the upcoming season was a no-brainer for the Saints after the Weber State product proved to be a dependable deep-ball complement to No. 1 wideout Chris Olave in 2023. Shaheed appeared in 15 games this past season, accruing 46 catches for 719 yards and five touchdowns on 75 targets while also carrying seven times for 37 yards. The 25-year-old was also a dynamic weapon on special teams, bringing back 25 punts for 339 yards and a touchdown and 18 kickoffs for 384 yards.
Meanwhile, fellow wide receiver Chris Olave (concussion) participated in individual drills. With Olave and Shaheed banged up and Michael Thomas (knee) on injured reserve, A.T. Perry, Lynn Bowden and Keith Kirkwood are the healthy wide receivers on the Saints' active roster.
Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football indicated that Shaheed will likely be unavailable this week, but it sounds like the speedy wideout and return man avoided a serious injury. The Saints host the Lions next Sunday. Shaheed, Chris Olave (concussion), and Michael Thomas (knee, IR) are all dinged up. New Orleans could be diving deep into its wideout depth chart.
With Michael Thomas (knee) on injured reserve, Chris Olave and Shaheed are the Saints' top two wide receivers, but both have made early departures from Week 12 action. The door at least has been left ajar for Shaheed to return, while Olave suffered a concussion and will be subject to the protocol for head injuries moving forward. If Shaheed remains on the sideline, he'll end Sunday with two catches (on five targets) and one punt return for six yards.
Shaheed was targeted five times in the first two quarters and recorded two catches for nine yards, but he appeared to sustain the thigh injury early in the contest and had it flare up once he checked back into the game. According to Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com, Shaheed threw his helmet on the ground in frustration shortly before he headed to the locker room late in the second quarter, so he could be at risk of being downgraded to out for the second half. If Shaheed is done for the day, it would be a major blow to a Saints receiving corps that recently lost Michael Thomas (knee) to injured reserve.
Shaheed connected with quarterback Derek Carr on two long balls, including a season-long 58-yard touchdown pass that he caught in stride before gliding into the end zone in the second quarter. The 25-year-old speedster also recorded a 51-yard catch deep down the left side of the field in the fourth quarter. Shaheed has now accounted for the Saints' three longest plays from scrimmage this season, and he has logged a 25-yard-plus reception in five of eight games. With 23 receptions on 38 targets for 479 yards, Shaheed should continue to serve as the team's go-to big-play threat while slotting in behind top wideouts Chris Olave and Michael Thomas, who logged nine and seven targets Sunday, respectively.
Career History
Previous Game
2023 Regular Season Stats
|
Regular Season
|
receiving
|
rushing
|
|||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Date
|
Opp
|
Result
|
REC
|
TGTS
|
YDS
|
AVG
|
TDS
|
LNG
|
YAC
|
CAR
|
YDS
|
AVG
|
TD
|
LNG
|
FD
|
|
1/7
|
W 48-17
|
3
|
4
|
65
|
21.7
|
1
|
39
|
0
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
|
12/31
|
W 23-13
|
2
|
3
|
14
|
7
|
0
|
9
|
4
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
|
12/21
|
L 22-30
|
5
|
9
|
70
|
14
|
1
|
45
|
2
|
1
|
4
|
4
|
0
|
4
|
0
|
|
|
12/17
|
W 24-6
|
3
|
4
|
36
|
12
|
0
|
19
|
12
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
|
11/26
|
L 15-24
|
2
|
5
|
9
|
4.5
|
0
|
5
|
4
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
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