Where does Khalil Shakir rank in terms of NFL WRs?

[BillsFooteball]

45-50 range 

[GASabresIUFan]

Among WRs Shakir was 35th in total receiving yards, 21st in receptions, 34th in targets, 2nd in total yards after catch (YAC) and 5th in Catch%.

 

At worst he is in the top 35.  Given his catch % and YAC, I'd argue he's closer to top 25.

 

I apologize for using facts/stats from which to base my opinion.

[Mikie2times]

2 minutes ago, GASabresIUFan said:

Among WRs Shakir was 35th in total receiving yards, 21st in receptions, 34th in targets, 2nd in total yards after catch (YAC) and 5th in Catch%.

 

At worst he is in the top 35.  Given his catch % and YAC, I'd argue he's closer to top 25.

 

I apologize for using facts/stats from which to base my opinion.

Catch % is more of a byproduct of ADOT. RB's are always among the league leaders in catch %. In many ways YAC is influenced in similar fashion as passes closer to the line are intentionally designed for YAC (even though we know he's an elite YAC guy either way).

 

Can he play outside? If the answer is no I don't think he can crack the top 30. In addition, we can't call any pass plays more than 10 yards down field and expect his talents to allow him to be open with consistency. That is a pretty serious issue if you rank him that high. 

 

He's a human pinball and probably the best WR in the league within 5 yards. Which is perfect for Brady and the Bills, but limiting as far as league wide comparisons. Which is why we see so much variance in what his value actually is. Some have called out mid 30's, which feels right. Probably top 20 in our offense. I think he's the most important player on our offense outside Josh and that includes Cook. He's always allowing us to stay ahead of schedule. Put Allen in 3rd and short and it's almost impossible.   

[MJS]

Shakir is a good receiver and he is an ascending player. But he is an inside slot guy. Yes he can play outside and he does get used that way, but he is most dangerous in the slot and the middle of the field.

 

That limits his ceiling, honestly. Especially with the Bills, who do not have a high volume passing offense. Targets and touches are limited.

 

He is young and ascending, though, so I think that gives him a bump and I'd put him ranked in the mid 20's somewhere. There would be more productive receivers below him in the ranking, but they are guys on the descent or who are productive because of their situation rather than raw ability.

[GASabresIUFan]

15 hours ago, Mikie2times said:

Can he play outside?

Who knows.  He hasn't been given that opportunity.  He has very similar physical size and slightly better speed than Diggs.  Diggs was very successful as an outside receiver.  Personally, I'd like to see Shakir given an opportunity to get outside, but he's such a safety valve for Josh, I doubt he gets the chance.  

 

At worst, I'd like to see Shakir get some deeper patterns like McConkey and Nucua.  Given his good speed, I think he can be more of a down the field threat like McConkey and Nucua.  

 

That said, I doubt their are 30 "better" players listed as WRs .  Certainly he is the most valuable receiver to the reigning NFL MVP and that counts a great deal more to me than comparing him to Chase or Jefferson.  

Edited July 22 by GASabresIUFan

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

On 7/17/2025 at 2:37 PM, Kirby Jackson said:

This is a topic that has been kicked around in countless threads this summer. The opinions seem to vary greatly. Figured we should have one place to discuss. It might be some interesting debate over these last few days before camp really kicks in.

 

In terms of ranking, THIS IS NOT ABOUT FANTASY FOOTBALL. This is meant to be, “if the league drafted every WR tomorrow, at the same salary, what number would he be picked with?” I haven’t made my list yet but intuitively I feel like he’s probably somewhere between 25-30. Curious as to what others think…

I think Shakir is much better than his numbers indicate. Brady emphasizes a more democratic approach when it comes to play calling. The Bills aren’t BAD at WR. They just lack any true top end talent, but they are definitely full of #2/3 options. Hence Shakir gets lost in the mix. Plus a big chunk of offensive production comes from combined running which takes away from the receivers.
 

Josh won an MVP last year. It’s clear who the REAL culprit is, the postseason pushovers defense. People are really still complaining about a well-balanced and efficient machine of the Bills offense. Please..

[RoscoeParrish]

41 minutes ago, GASabresIUFan said:

Who knows.  He hasn't been given that opportunity.  He has very similar physical size and slightly better speed than Diggs.  Diggs was very successful as an outside receiver.  Personally, I'd like to see Shakir given an opportunity to get outside, but he's such a safety valve for Josh, I doubt he gets the chance.  

 

At worst, I'd like to see Shakir get some deeper patterns like McConkey and Nucua.  Given his good speed, I think he can be more of a down the field threat like McConkey and Nucua.  

 

That said, I doubt their are 30 "better" players listed as WRs .  Certainly he is the most valuable receiver to the reigning NFL MVP and that counts a great deal more to me than comparing him to Chase or Jefferson.  

He hasn’t been given the opportunity because his own coaches genuinely don’t believe he can play outside. They have acquired a fair amount of boundary WRs over the past 2 seasons to keep Shakir out of there.

[Billl]

10 minutes ago, RoscoeParrish said:

He hasn’t been given the opportunity because his own coaches genuinely don’t believe he can play outside. They have acquired a fair amount of boundary WRs over the past 2 seasons to keep Shakir out of there.

Maybe more telling is that they’ve got a bunch of slot WRs, and Shakir’s still entrenched in that spot.  If he could effectively play on the boundary, they’d put Coleman or Samuel in the slot and instantly improve at two positions.

[3rdand12]

3 hours ago, RoscoeParrish said:

He hasn’t been given the opportunity because his own coaches genuinely don’t believe he can play outside. They have acquired a fair amount of boundary WRs over the past 2 seasons to keep Shakir out of there.

So by design ?

 I won't define him as a slot receiver as I would Beasely.
But he will not be a deep threat either. Bills bring in players for that skill set each season it seems lol

 How he fits Bills ? He is worthy of a 1st round pick

But thats hindsight by me

[Mikie2times]

4 hours ago, GASabresIUFan said:

Who knows.  He hasn't been given that opportunity.  He has very similar physical size and slightly better speed than Diggs.  Diggs was very successful as an outside receiver.  Personally, I'd like to see Shakir given an opportunity to get outside, but he's such a safety valve for Josh, I doubt he gets the chance.  

 

At worst, I'd like to see Shakir get some deeper patterns like McConkey and Nucua.  Given his good speed, I think he can be more of a down the field threat like McConkey and Nucua.  

 

That said, I doubt their are 30 "better" players listed as WRs .  Certainly he is the most valuable receiver to the reigning NFL MVP and that counts a great deal more to me than comparing him to Chase or Jefferson.  

 

3 hours ago, RoscoeParrish said:

He hasn’t been given the opportunity because his own coaches genuinely don’t believe he can play outside. They have acquired a fair amount of boundary WRs over the past 2 seasons to keep Shakir out of there.

 

3 hours ago, Billl said:

Maybe more telling is that they’ve got a bunch of slot WRs, and Shakir’s still entrenched in that spot.  If he could effectively play on the boundary, they’d put Coleman or Samuel in the slot and instantly improve at two positions.

With the amount of talented slots we have which could even include Coleman as a big slot or Kincaid from the TE position, if Shakir could get off the line or had the chops to give us anything outside it would be negligent to have not done so. He can't play outside. I think it's almost as obvious as asking the same thing about Beasley, Edelman, Welker, etc. Great players, they might get a look or two in certain formation, but usually off the LOS. They can't beat press coverage.  

[GoBills808]

20 hours ago, Mikie2times said:

Catch % is more of a byproduct of ADOT. RB's are always among the league leaders in catch %. In many ways YAC is influenced in similar fashion as passes closer to the line are intentionally designed for YAC (even though we know he's an elite YAC guy either way).

 

Can he play outside? If the answer is no I don't think he can crack the top 30. In addition, we can't call any pass plays more than 10 yards down field and expect his talents to allow him to be open with consistency. That is a pretty serious issue if you rank him that high. 

 

He's a human pinball and probably the best WR in the league within 5 yards. Which is perfect for Brady and the Bills, but limiting as far as league wide comparisons. Which is why we see so much variance in what his value actually is. Some have called out mid 30's, which feels right. Probably top 20 in our offense. I think he's the most important player on our offense outside Josh and that includes Cook. He's always allowing us to stay ahead of schedule. Put Allen in 3rd and short and it's almost impossible.   

put it this way- you better be near top of the league in YAC if you're a high catch%/low aDOT guy

[LABILLBACKER]

ESPN FF.    WR40

YAHOO FF.    WR43

PFF.       WR42

[Simon]

33 minutes ago, LABILLBACKER said:

ESPN FF.    WR40

YAHOO FF.    WR43

PFF.       WR42

 

 

 

On 7/17/2025 at 2:37 PM, Kirby Jackson said:

In terms of ranking, THIS IS NOT ABOUT FANTASY FOOTBALL.

 

 

[RoscoeParrish]

2 hours ago, 3rdand12 said:

So by design ?

 I won't define him as a slot receiver as I would Beasely.
But he will not be a deep threat either. Bills bring in players for that skill set each season it seems lol

 How he fits Bills ? He is worthy of a 1st round pick

But thats hindsight by me

Yeah it’s by design. IMO.

 

They targeted Keon, Palmer, and Mack to all play on the boundary. I think Shakir at this point has proven to be a better WR than all 3 of them. I think the Bills and everyone would agree with that assessment.

 

so then the question is, why are all 3 of those guys playing on the boundary while Shakir is stuck in the slot?

And the answer is because the coaching staff believes those, for lack of a better word, worse, WRs are better contributors on the boundary than Shakir.

 

 

Edited July 23 by RoscoeParrish

[Sierra Foothills]

2 hours ago, RoscoeParrish said:

So then the question is, why are all 3 of those guys playing on the boundary while Shakir is stuck in the slot?

 

 

 

[GASabresIUFan]

5 hours ago, Mikie2times said:

 

 

With the amount of talented slots we have which could even include Coleman as a big slot or Kincaid from the TE position, if Shakir could get off the line or had the chops to give us anything outside it would be negligent to have not done so. He can't play outside. I think it's almost as obvious as asking the same thing about Beasley, Edelman, Welker, etc. Great players, they might get a look or two in certain formation, but usually off the LOS. They can't beat press coverage.  

You can't reach that conclusion.  The only thing you can say for sure is that the coaches think the best use of Shakir on the Bills is in the slot and as Josh's safety valve.  

[GunnerBill]

4 hours ago, GASabresIUFan said:

You can't reach that conclusion.  The only thing you can say for sure is that the coaches think the best use of Shakir on the Bills is in the slot and as Josh's safety valve.  

 

Yes we can. He can't play outside. He is a slot only. 

[nuklz2594]

Should've drafted McConnell. Shakir and ladd would've been special