The regular season of the NFL schedule has finally arrived. The Buffalo Bills will open their season against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night. This matchup could be one of the biggest of the season for the Bills.
Buffalo will be rolling out new players this week who have never appeared in a Week 1 game in the league. One of the players is wide receiver Tyrell Shavers, who will be rocking a new look.
During the preseason, Shavers wore No. 80, but is reverting to his old number, No. 14. Shavers wore No. 14 when he played college football for Alabama and San Diego State.
Tyrell Shavers Has Spent a Long Time Working For This Moment
Shavers spent three seasons playing for the Crimson Tide, only recording one reception. After he left Alabama, he attended Mississippi State, where he played in only four games, recording 117 receiving yards and one score. After not even a full season in Starkville, he landed at San Diego State for the 2021 campaign.
In two seasons in San Diego, Shavers appeared in 26 games, recording 856 receiving yards and five scores. Unfortunately, his production wasn’t good enough because he went undrafted in 2023. A few weeks after the draft, Shavers signed a three-year contract with the Bills and has spent the last two seasons on the team’s practice squad.
Last season, Shavers was able to appear in three regular-season games for Buffalo, even catching a 69-yard touchdown in the Bills‘ Week 18 loss to the New England Patriots.
This preseason, Shavers was facing an uphill battle to make the 53-man roster. The Bills went out this offseason and signed three veteran receivers, Josh Palmer, Elijah Moore, and Laviska Shenault Jr.
Shavers Competed to Make The Bills Roster
Palmer spent four seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers, recording 282 receptions for 2,287 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was signed to a three-year, $29 million contract, ensuring a guaranteed spot on the roster.
Moore was a second-round pick of the New York Jets in 2021, spending two seasons with the team before being traded to the Cleveland Browns. In 61 career games, Moore has recorded 2,162 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. But he hasn’t had great quarterback production playing with players like Zach Wilson and Deshaun Watson.
Playing with a star quarterback like Josh Allen could free Moore up to have greater production this season. And Shenault brings five years of NFL experience, who’s also a player in the special teams game.
Shavers should’ve been the odd man out in the receiving room once again. However, he had a great preseason, recording six receptions for 123 yards and a score. The Bills decided to keep Shavers on the 53-man roster and parted ways with Shenault.
It took Shavers three years to make the roster coming out of camp, but he told reporters on August 28th that it was surreal to make the team.
“It was kind of surreal,” Shavers said. “I honestly feel like it still hasn’t fully processed. This is something I’ve been working for since I started playing football when I was 4 years old. I always dreamed of playing in the NFL. So, making the 53 is honestly one of the biggest achievements ever, besides my daughter being born.” Via Kay Racine from Buffalo Bills.com.
Since Shavers is listed as a backup on the Bills‘ depth chart, there’s a chance he won’t see the field on Sunday. But that doesn’t mean he won’t be part of the team’s plans heading towards a playoff race this winter.
Bills Rising WR Will Have a New Look For Week 1