Rashid Shaheed (born August 31, 1998) 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 ...

and

return specialist A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

for the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

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for the

Weber State Wildcats The Weber State Wildcats are the varsity athletic teams representing Weber State University in Ogden, Utah in intercollegiate athletics, sponsoring 16 teams. The Wildcats compete in NCAA Division I FCS and are charter members (1963) of the Big ...

and signed with the Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2022.

Early life

Shaheed attended Mt. Carmel High School in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

from 2013 to 2016.

College career

Shaheed played

for the

from 2017 to 2021. The only player in school history to earn

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors four times. Shaheed set the FCS all-time record for career kickoff return touchdowns with seven, and had a 100-yard return in Weber State's 2021 win over Northern Arizona. He finished his career at Weber State with 5,478 all-purpose yards, ranked as the third most in Weber State history. He ended up seventh in career receiving yards with 2,178 yards and 18 touchdowns at Weber State, and 10th in school history for career receptions with 147. He had a remarkable kick return average of 29.1 yards per return, and also finished third in career punt return yardage.

Professional career

On May 2, 2022, Shaheed signed with the

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. On August 30, Shaheed was released by the Saints, and signed to the team's practice squad the next day. October 15, he was signed to the Saints' active roster. On October 16, in his NFL debut, he had a 44-yard rushing touchdown on his first career touch. On October 20 against the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

, in his second career game, he caught a 53-yard touchdown pass from quarterback

Andy Dalton Andrew Gregory Dalton (born October 29, 1987) is an American professional football quarterback for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed "the Red Rifle", he played college football for the TCU Horned Frogs, wher ...

. The reception was his first career catch and only his second offensive touch. Shaheed started his career wearing number 89 but switched to 22 before the 2023 season. In Week 8 against the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

, Shaheed enjoyed a career game, hauling in three receptions for 153 yards and a touchdown in the 38–27 victory. On January 3, 2024, it was announced that Shaheed was selected to play in the

2024 Pro Bowl Games The 2024 Pro Bowl Games were the National Football League all-star game for the 2023 NFL season. This was the second year that the event consisted of skills competitions and a non-contact flag football game rather than an actual tackle football ...

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

. He was tendered by the Saints as an Exclusive Rights free agent in March - worth the NFL minimum salary - where he could not negotiate with other teams as a result of being undrafted and with less than three years of experience. Shaheed will be eligible for a contract extension in 2025. However, on July 20, Shaheed and the Saints agreed to a one–year, $5.2 million contract extension. On October 17, Shaheed was placed on injured reserve after he underwent season-ending knee surgery to repair his meniscus; prior to the injury, he led the league with 15.9 yards per punt return.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Notes

References

External links

New Orleans Saints bioWeber State Wildcats bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shaheed, Rashid 1998 births Living people American football wide receivers Weber State Wildcats football players New Orleans Saints players Players of American football from Phoenix, Arizona Players of American football from San Diego Mt. Carmel High School (San Diego) alumni National Conference Pro Bowl players