The Seattle Seahawks' biggest offensive reinforcement may have come before free agency. They traded for New Orleans Saints big-play specialist Rashid Shaheed midway through the season, reuniting him with offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.
With Kubiak gone, Shaheed was also a potential candidate to take his talents to Sin City this offseason. Instead, the Seahawks gave him a three-year, $51 million deal that turned some heads at the time, given his lack of involvement in the passing game.
However, giving him $17 mlilion a year hinted at a much bigger role in his first full season in the league. Judging by Mike Macdonald's latest comments, it looks like the wide receiver is already earning his keep in Seattle.
The Seattle Seahawks need to get Rashid Shaheed involved
“Rashid, he deserves a lot of credit,” Macdonald told reporters (h/t Pro Football Talk). “He’s been here the whole time. He’s had a great attitude. He’s had a lot of personal records in our offseason training program. The timing of our plays look like it should, given the amount of reps that are invested into it. I know I’m as excited as heck to see where it goes.”
The Seahawks’ Super Bowl run was fueled in part by the in-season trade that brought receiver Rashid Shaheed from New Orleans. While Shaheed’s contributions to the offense were modest, his punt return for a touchdown sparked a 16-point comeback in a Thursday night win over the Rams that became critical to securing the No. 1 seed.
Shaheed's offensive contributions were rather modest last year. He hauled in 15 receptions on 26 targets for 188 yards with no touchdowns, adding seven carries for 64 yards.
That said, he was absolutely electric on special teams, returning 14 kicks for 418 yards and one touchdown and 13 punts for 210 yards and another score that fueled a double-digit comeback vs. the Los Angeles Rams that helped them secure the best record in the NFC. He returned another kick for a touchdown in the playoffs.
The Seahawks have the reigning Offensive Player of the Year on their ranks, so Jaxon Smith-Njigba will clearly draw most of the attention and the targets. That said, he can only do so much on his own, and Shaheed's big-play potential should grant him a big role in Brian Fleury's passing game.
With Smith-Njigba logging double teams and Cooper Kupp not being much of a speedster, Sam Darnold should look to take advantage of Shaheed's speed and shifty movements to secure big gains.
He's clearly one of the most dangerous special team weapons in the game, but the Seahawks will have to decide whether they want to risk him taking big hits as a returner after giving him such a lofty raise. As much as he can help them there, it might not be in their best interests in the long run.
A lot has been said of the Seahawks' wide receiver corps and how they might be a one-man unit, with Kupp no longer at the peak of his powers. Shaheed is the perfect guy to change that, and Darnold has the arm talent and strength to sling the pigskin down the field and find him for explosive plays.
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