The rise of Rashid Shaheed
By: Jake Rajala
It seemed strange when the New Orleans Saints traded away the utterly explosive wide receiver/return specialist Rashid Shaheed to the Seattle Seahawks. After all, he is in his prime, and the Saints don’t exactly have the best depth at WR. Besides Chris Olave, the Saints don’t have a superb WR2.
Well, the Hawks sure are happy to have Shaheed. He made the biggest play in the playoffs yesterday when he returned a kick to the endzone (which came on the first play of the game). He gives off Devin Hester vibes. He honestly has a ceiling similar to Hester.
With defenses focusing on Jaxon Smith-Njiba (who is the best WR in the league), there’s room for Shaheed to burst onto the scene. He recorded 687 receiving yards this season.
Not only is Shaheed explosive as a return specialist and at running routes at WR, but he can also take jet sweeps and reverses in space. We witnessed Shaheed convert a first down and more with a reverse against the 49ers.
Shaheed is only 27 years old. It isn’t like Shaheed is a 30+ year old WR looking to ride off into the sunset this season. He could be a part of a very special team that has a legit shot of reaching the Super Bowl in each season. Darnold is only 28 years old.
The Hawks are quite stellar all-around. It reminds me of the Seahawks team that beat the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl. They have the number one defense, a Pro Bowl QB, and a returner in Shaheed to take it the distance. It would be impossible to forget that the Hawks had Percy Harvin, who could take it all the way.
If the Hawks want to go blow for blow with the likes of LA or the Bears, they need all hands on deck. The Rams were first in PPG this season and the Bears were ninth in PPG. Shaheed needs to be the x factor once again.
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