Buffalo Bills wide receiver Khalil Shakir emerged as the top receiving option for Josh Allen in 2024, and one of the better slot receivers in the NFL.
The third-year WR saw career highs with 100 targets, 76 catches, 821 yards, and four receiving touchdowns in 2024. What helped lead to this breakout season for Shakir? According to PFF's Lauren Gray, Shakir was consistently "wide open".
Gray broke down the top separators in the NFL, placing receivers in different categories. Shakir was second in the league in target rate while having "two or more steps of separation," or as Gray categorized it, "wide open".
When including his postseason production, Shakir was "wide open" on 71.3% of his targets, which quantified to 85, third most in the NFL. Gray writes, "He caught 77 of those passes for 792 yards, both top-10 marks. He also recorded a 90.2 PFF receiving grade on those plays, gaining 30 first downs and catching three touchdown passes."
Denver's Marvin Mims Jr was the only receiver with a higher "wide open" rate (75.9%), with Tutu Atwell, Zay Flowers, and Demario Douglas rounding out PFF's top five. Former Bill Stefon Diggs was also fourth in targets with one or more steps of separation, with a 90.3% rate for Houston last season.
Shakir runs a large portion of his routes close to the line of scrimmage, and screen passes can help account for why Shakir is constantly open. Gray continues, "He caught 29 of his 31 screen targets for 189 yards in 2024. He finished fourth in receiving yards on screens, picking up eight first downs and scored twice, earning a fifth-ranked 83.5 PFF receiving grade on such plays."
Regardless of whether it's a screen or a deeper route, Buffalo would be smart to keep feeding him the ball, since he "ranks in the top three in missed tackles forced (25), yards after contact (270) and yards after the catch per reception (7.7)," according to Gray.
While Joe Brady's "everybody eats" philosophy has been successful thus far with Buffalo's offense, it prevents one player from consistently receiving a lion's share of targets. If Josh Allen needed to constantly rely on Shakir the way other WR1s are utilized, he could easily be an annual 1,000 yard receiver. In the meantime, he'll continue to be one of the most underappreciated receivers in the NFL, making the most of his targets and opportunities for game-changing plays.
