WR Rashid Shaheed was one of our favorite sleepers heading into last season. He got off to a solid start, catching 44 balls for 499 yards and 2 scores over his first nine games. But a midseason trade to Seattle crushed Shaheed's fantasy value. He totaled just 15 catches for 188 scoreless yards across nine games with the Seahawks. Shaheed is back with the Hawks this year, and it sounds like he's on track to play a bigger role in the offense. ESPN's Jeremy Fowler hears that Shaheed is set to be a "big-time player" for Seattle. It sets him up as a classic post-hype fantasy sleeper.
What They're Saying
More from Fowler on Shaheed: "He had a major spring ... He and Sam Darnold are hitting it off. They're gonna give him more. Some of those routes you saw that Jaxon Smith-Njigba was running so well last year, he'll still do those. But they're gonna give more short to intermediate stuff to Rashid Shaheed."
2026 Fantasy Football Impact
Shaheed's second-half fade wasn't surprising. WRs who change teams mid-season tend to disappoint. It's tough to learn a new offense and settle in with a new QB during the season.
But Shaheed remains an exciting talent, with a career 14.7 yards per catch. He finished WR50 in PPR points per game in his 2023 sophomore campaign, sat 24th among WRs through Week 5 in 2024 before a season-ending injury, and ranked 39th at the position over nine games with the Saints last year.
The Seahawks are clearly high on him. They traded fourth- and fifth-round picks to the Saints for Shaheed ahead of last season's trade deadline -- and then signed him to a 3-year, $51 million deal in March.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba will still control targets in Seattle, but Shaheed has a chance to pass a fading Cooper Kupp for the No. 2 spot. That could make Shaheed a spot-start option with spike-week upside.
That upside looks particularly attractive at a WR58 best ball ADP.
