Bills' Khalil Shakir New No. 3 WR? 'I'm Ready!'
The Buffalo Bills are wanting more out of their receiving corps as training camp ramps up. The ending to last season, where the Cincinnatti Bengals ended the Bills' Super Bowl dreams in the divisional round, showed a potential chink in the armor of Buffalo's offense.
Stefon Diggs, the undisputed No. 1 option for the Bills through the air, was held to just four receptions for 35 yards in the 27-10 loss, and it wasn't due to a lack of trying to get No. 14 the ball. Quarterback Josh Allen targeted Diggs 10 times, yet the Bengals' defense only allowed four catches.
That is when everyone soon realized that in order for Buffalo the achieve its goal of bringing home a Lombardi Trophy, they'll need more than just Diggs.
That is where 2022 fifth-round draft pick Khalil Shakir comes into play for the Bills this season. A quick glance at his stats from last season won't be all too enticing as he totaled 252 yards and a touchdown on 15 catches if you include the postseason.
The postseason is where a rapport between Allen and Shakir started to build. as he was targeted a season-high five times in the Wild Card win over the Miami Dolphins and was the second-leading receiver against the Bengals. Now, he's showing some self confidence entering his second season,
"[I am] definitely making sure that [Josh Allen] knows that I'm ready to take that next step," Shakir said of his plans for training camp in an interview on the team's YouTube channel. "But at the same time, I still got to pay my dues every day and come out here and make sure that I make big plays trying to stand out."
Shakir's lack of production last season could partially be blamed on being buried on the depth chart. This now could be rectified with Isaiah McKenzie being cut and the Bills opting not to re-sign Cole Beasley this offseason. Shakir will get his first chance at being near the top of the Bills' depth chart. However, the offseason signings of receivers Trent Sherfield and Deonte Harty means that Shakir is far from a lock to be the team's No. 3 receiver.
It may not be a coincidence that some of Shakir's best play came in the playoffs for the Bills as a rookie. As we later found out, thanks to Pro Football Focus, Shakir led all rookie receivers last season in his ability to get open versus man coverage.
As shown in the chart from PFF, Shakir was open 48.57 percent of the time when he lined up against a man defender. Shakir's open rating was higher than bigger-name rookies like Garrett Wilson (New York Jets) - who won tthe Offensive Rookie of the Year - Chris Olave (New Orleans Saints), and George Pickens (Pittsburgh Steelers), granted it was on fewer snaps.
Yet that is where camp will come into play for Shakir as he works to earn more snaps on the Bills' offense that will need play-making help.
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