Khalil Shakir (born February 3, 2000) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

for the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

of the

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(NFL). He played

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for the Boise State Broncos and was selected by the Bills in the fifth round of the

2022 NFL draft The 2022 NFL draft was the 87th edition of the National Football League's annual NFL draft, draft and was held from April 28–30, 2022, at the Caesars Forum on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, Paradise next to Las Vegas. The first round ...

Early life

Khalil's father was a Master Gunnery Sergeant in the Marine Corps. As a child, Shakir spent time in Hawaii and Japan. Shakir attended

Vista Murrieta High School Vista Murrieta High School (VMHS) is a comprehensive, four-year high school located in Murrieta, California, United States. It is operated by the Murrieta Valley Unified School District. It opened in August 2003, relieving the overcrowding at Mur ...

Murrieta, California Murrieta is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The population of Murrieta was 110,949 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Murrieta experienced a 133.7% population increase between 2000 and 2010, ma ...

. He committed to

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a Public university, public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has b ...

to play

College career

Shakir appeared in 10 games with one start as a true freshman at Boise State in 2018. He had 16 receptions for 170 yards with one receiving

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

and one rushing. As a sophomore in 2019, he started five of 14 games, recording 63 receptions for 872 yards with six receiving touchdowns and three rushing touchdowns. Shakir started all seven games his junior year in 2020 and had 52 receptions for 719 yards and six touchdowns. Shakir returned to Boise State for his senior season in 2021 and caught 77 passes for 1,117 yards and 7 touchdowns.

Professional career

The

selected Shakir in the fifth round, 148th overall, of the

. Shakir caught his first touchdown pass in Week 5 against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

in a 38–3 Buffalo victory. In his rookie season, he appeared in 14 games and recorded 10 receptions for 161 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown. Shakir's role expanded in 2023. Despite a slow start to the season as Buffalo's number 3 receiver, he became one of

Josh Allen Joshua Patrick Allen (born May 21, 1996) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wyoming Cowboys football, Wyoming Cow ...

's top targets by the end of the year. Shakir had a breakout game against the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

in week 8, catching six passes for a then-career-high 92 yards, before eclipsing that performance against the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

in week 11 with three catches for 115 yards, with 81 of those yards coming on a third-quarter catch-and-run touchdown. Shakir finished the 2023 season with 611 receiving yards and two touchdowns, catching 39 of 45 targets, which was the top catch percentage by any receiver in the league at 86.7%. Shakir continued to help the Bills in the playoffs, catching a touchdown in both their games, including a 17-yard score in which he shrugged off Steelers safety

Minkah Fitzpatrick Minkah Annane Fitzpatrick Jr. (born November 17, 1996) is an American professional American football, football Safety (gridiron football position), safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college footba ...

after a short pass, balanced himself without falling down, and ran in the rest of the way for the touchdown. Entering the 2024 season, Shakir became the lone remaining starting wide receiver on the Bills from the previous year, as

Stefon Diggs Stefon Marsean Diggs (born November 29, 1993) is an American professional American football, football wide receiver for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Maryland Terrapins footbal ...

was traded and Gabe Davis left in free agency. Shakir started the 2024 season strong as Buffalo's leading receiver, catching his first 17 targets to surpass 30 consecutive catches dating from the previous season and breaking the record previously set by

Michael Thomas Michael or Mike Thomas may refer to: Entertainment * Michael M. Thomas (1936–2021), American novelist of financial thrillers * Michael Tilson Thomas (born 1944), American conductor, pianist, and composer * Michael Thomas (actor) (1952–2019), B ...

at 27 consecutive catches. However, he suffered an ankle injury against the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...

and missed the following game as a result. On February 25, 2025, Shakir signed a four-year contract extension through the 2029 season worth $60.2 million with $32 million guaranteed.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Postseason

References

External links

Buffalo Bills bioBoise State Broncos bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shakir, Khalil Living people Sportspeople from Murrieta, California Players of American football from Riverside County, California American football wide receivers Boise State Broncos football players 2000 births Buffalo Bills players Pacific Islander American players of American football American sportspeople of Samoan descent American people of Tongan descent