A $51 million contract brings expectations, and a few games into the season, Rashid Shaheed is waiting for his first receiving touchdown.
Mike Macdonald said Wednesday he didn’t know Shaheed’s numbers offhand. He knew where the ball had been going. And that’s to Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Asked about Shaheed’s quiet start, the Seattle Seahawks coach noted Smith-Njigba’s production before mentioning a short answer about when Shaheed’s turn might come.
“It will. It will. I think we just got to stick to our process,” Macdonald said in a video shared by Gregg Bell of The News Tribune.
Shaheed, who re-signed this spring for $17M per year, has 12 targets through three games.
That’s a vote of confidence, though it comes without a timetable or a promise to force the ball to Shaheed.
The Seahawks have received explosive plays from him before.
They now have to find more of them in the passing game.
Shaheed has six catches for 53 yards and no receiving touchdowns through three games. Bell reported he has drawn 12 targets. Smith-Njigba has 27 catches for 405 yards and six touchdowns.
Shaheed’s Bigger Offensive Role Has Yet to Arrive
Seattle traded for Shaheed midway through its championship season, then committed to him in March on a three-year, $51 million agreement, according to NFL.com.
His first nine regular-season games as a Seahawk yielded 15 catches for 188 yards. The impact came in louder bursts elsewhere, including touchdowns on a kickoff return and a punt return during the regular season.
His 95-yard kickoff return to open the divisional playoff win over the San Francisco 49ers reinforced a player who can swing a game for Seattle in a few seconds. He also hauled in a 51-yard pass in the NFC championship game against the Los Angeles Rams.
Shaheed expected that growth.
During training camp, he told Seahawks.com that offseason work with Sam Darnold had helped their timing after he joined the team midway through 2025.
Three games later, the results have been uneven.
Shaheed caught one pass for 4 yards against the New England Patriots, three for 35 against the Arizona Cardinals and two for 14 against the Washington Commanders.
Smith-Njigba’s Start Changes the Target Conversation
Macdonald’s reference to Smith-Njigba was more than a convenient explanation.
When one receiver is averaging 135 yards and two touchdowns per game, quarterbacks have every reason to keep looking his way.
Shaheed’s modest total can coexist with exceptional production from Seattle’s first option.
Nonetheless, Seattle has reason to want more from its other speed threat.
Shaheed gives defenses a different problem from the one Smith-Njigba presents, and a few timely connections downfield could change how opponents defend the rest of the formation. His presence can help when the ball goes elsewhere, but the Seahawks paid for the possibility that it would find him, too.
The upcoming test comes Sunday at home against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Seattle enters at 2-1 after a 33-31 loss at Washington, a game in which Smith-Njigba caught 10 passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns while Shaheed finished with 14 yards.
Macdonald’s patience is clear.
Will the Chargers game provide the occasion for Shaheed to make a bigger impact?
Seahawks HC Responds to Rashid Shaheed’s Slow Start After $51M Deal