Tag: Weber State

Countdown to Kickoff: Rashid Shaheed is the Saints Player of Day 22

Countdown to Kickoff: Rashid Shaheed is the Saints Player of Day 22. The third-year pro is looking to take a big leap forward in a new offense

We’ve got just 22 days left until the New Orleans  Saints open up  their 2024 regular season against the  Carolina Panthers, which means the current owner of the No. 22 jersey is our Saints Player of the Day. Rashid Shaheed is going into 2024 with a ton of momentum, having earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro recognition for his skills in the return game while breaking out as one of Derek Carr’s favorite receivers last season — and then he signed a contract extension to stay with the Saints through 2025.

But what’s his story? What are realistic expectations for Shaheed in 2024? Let’s dig in.

  • Name (Age): Rashid Shaheed (25)
  • Position: Wide receiver/returns specialist
  • Height, weight: 6-foot, 180 pounds
  • Relative Athletic Score: N/A
  • 2024 salary cap hit: $1,235,000
  • College: Weber State
  • Drafted: Undrafted in 2022 (New Orleans Saints)
  • NFL experience: 3rd season

Shaheed grew up in San Diego (where he happened to cross paths with Drew Brees once as an elementary school student) and played high school football at Mt. Carmel, where he was recruited to Weber State in Utah. He earned All-American honors four times in college and finished with the third-most all-purpose yards in school history, which helped put him on the Saints’ radar as an undrafted free agent despite suffering a serious knee injury in his senior year.

Still, the Saints took a patient approach with Shaheed’s recovery, and it paid off. He made some exciting plays as a rookie in 2022 (while wearing the No. 89 jersey), ripping off a 44-yard touchdown run with his first touch and a 53-yard touchdown catch with his first reception. Then he switched to No. 22 before the 2023 season and truly broke out after getting in a full offseason of work.

He  totaled 719 receiving yards along with 384 kick return yards and 339 punt return yards last season (plus 37 rushing yards), scoring five touchdown catches and a punt return touchdown. Shaheed was the only player in the NFL to have 300-plus return yards on both punts and kickoffs while also gaining more than 500 yards of offense. Look at the runners-up:

  • Rashid Shaheed (Saints): 756 scrimmage yards, 384 KR yards, 339 PR yards. 1,479 all-purpose yards
  • Xavier Gipson (Jets): 297 scrimmage yards, 511 KR yards, 319 PR yards. 1,127 all-purpose yards
  • Marvin Mims (Broncos): 407 scrimmage yards, 397 KR yards, 312 PR yards. 1,116 all-purpose yards
  • Derius Davis (Chargers): 167 scrimmage yards, 374 KR yards, 385 PR yards. 926 all-purpose yards

The hope is for Shaheed to take another step forward with Klint Kubiak calling plays instead of Pete Carmichael. Finding new, creative ways to get Shaheed involved and taking full advantage of his athleticism is a high priority. At the same time, he needs to prove he’s a more well-rounded player. Last season he was rotated out of games in favor of guys like Keith Kirkwood and Lynn Bowden Jr. because Shaheed couldn’t throw his weight around as well blocking for his teammates. He’s currently dealing with a toe or foot injury, so we’ll have to wait and see whether it’s severe, but the expectation is for Shaheed to be a big player for the team this year.

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New Orleans Saints sign Rashid Shaheed to one-year contract extension

The Saints reached an agreement on a contract extension with wide receiver Rashid Shaheed. The deal will keep him in New Orleans through the 2025 season:

The New Orleans Saints have signed wide receiver Rashid Shaheed to a contract extension, as first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter and confirmed by NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill. Shaheed had signed an exclusive rights free agent deal for the 2024 season earlier this offseason that was worth just $985,000. The former undrafted free agent agreed to a one-year, $5.2 million extension that will keep him with the Saints through the 2025 season.

Good for him. The Weber State product is coming off a career year. Shaheed finished last season with 46 catches, 716 receiving yards, and five touchdowns. He also had 339 punt return yards, which ranked third in the league, and won him his first Pro Bowl appearance.

He’s a special player with elite speed and an ability to track the football deep downfield. Additionally, Shaheed’s value on special teams is equally as important. This deal could end up being a bargain for the Saints. Shaheed has improved every year and could be looking at an expanded role under new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.

The future is bright for what is undeniably one of the NFL’s best stories.

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Thunder’s Dillon Jones explains deep importance of No. 3 jersey

Thunder’s Dillon Jones explains deep importance of No. 3 jersey.

After one press conference, it’s evident why the Oklahoma City Thunder fell head over heels for Dillon Jones to the point they shipped five future second-round picks to acquire him.

The 22-year-old had a unique journey to the NBA. He went from a zero-star high school prospect who spent four years at small-school Weber State to a first-round selection.

Turning down the chance to get drafted in the second round last year and later significant NIL money to transfer, Jones stuck to his principles and bet on himself. The risky gamble paid off for the No. 26 selection of the 2024 NBA draft.

He dominated his senior season with the Wildcats and was added by one of the best-developing organizations in the league.

Jones possesses great self-awareness and maturity that strides away from most first-round selections. He understands his NBA role will be downsized from what it was at Weber State as the top option but is fine with that.

“Being the guy made me know what the guy will need from me,” Jones said.

This was a great response that won a lot of Thunder fans over. The usual first-round pick likely enters the league with dreams of being an All-Star, but Jones understands his best path to success likely involves being a solid role player.

Considering his characteristics, it shouldn’t be a shocker Jones’ selection of the No. 3 jersey held a deeper meaning than the average number choice by a player. The 22-year-old opened up about the meaning behind the number and stated it has deep sentimental roots in his family.

“(My brother) grew up with the No. 3 and things like that,” Jones said. “As this journey’s gone, I’ve just tried to honor different people with my numbers. That was his number. Three is big in our family.”

After scanning the available numbers, a lightbulb went off in Jones’ head when he came across the No. 3 — which was previously worn by Josh Giddey for three seasons.

“A person that’s close to us — his best friend — passed away in high school. He wears the No. 33 to honor him,” Jones said. “When the No. 3 was available, I just thought it’d be something good to honor the family and keep that in there.”

This is just the latest example of how thoughtful Jones is. Working his way up from being in a small school to a first-round selection requires strong character and he’s shown that already before he even donned a Thunder jersey.

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2024 NBA draft: Thunder trade for No. 26 pick, add Weber State’s Dillon Jones

2024 NBA draft: Thunder trade for No. 26 pick, add Weber State’s Dillon Jones.

The Oklahoma City Thunder selected Weber State’s Dillon Jones with the No. 26 pick in the first round of the 2024 NBA draft. This comes after the Thunder acquired the draft pick from the New York Knicks.

The Thunder ship five second-round draft picks from 2025-27 to the Knicks, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

The 22-year-old played four college seasons from 2021-24 at Weber State. He was a starter in his last three seasons with the Wildcats.

In 31 games last season, Jones averaged 20.8 points on 48.9% shooting, 9.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and two steals. He shot 32.4% from 3 on 3.4 attempts. At 6-foot-5, 235 pounds, he has good size for a forward.

Jones joins Nikola Topic as the Thunder’s first-round haul. He was selected with the No. 12 selection.

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Report: Weber State’s Dillon Jones had predraft workout with Thunder

Report: Weber State’s Dillon Jones had predraft workout with Thunder.

The calendar has flipped to June, which means NBA teams are intensifying their predraft process and hosting players for workouts and visits. The 2024 NBA draft will take place from June 26-27.

The Oklahoma City Thunder enter this year’s class with a sole draft pick of the No. 12 selection. OKC was gifted the free lottery pick via the Houston Rockets.

The Thunder have hosted several meetings with draft prospects in the past few weeks. This includes players outside the lottery range as OKC will likely seek to add undrafted free agents or even buy back into the second round if it likes someone enough.

One possibility is Weber State’s Dillon Jones. He reportedly had a predraft workout with the Thunder, per The Athletic’s Andrew Schlecht on his “Down to Dunk” podcast.

The 22-year-old played four college seasons from 2021-24 at Weber State. He was a starter in his last three seasons with the Wildcats.

In 31 games last season, Jones averaged 20.8 points on 48.9% shooting, 9.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and two steals. He shot 32.4% from 3 on 3.4 attempts. At 6-foot-5, 235 pounds, he has good size for a forward.

Jones is likely a second-round selection. This means the Thunder will need to trade back into the second round if they like him enough. He’d likely spend most of his next season with the G League’s OKC Blue.

A full list of 2024 NBA draft prospects that have worked out or visited the Thunder in the predraft process can be viewed here.

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Catching up with the Boston Celtics’ 2023 NBA draft workouts part II

A new round of prospective Celtics have worked out for Boston ahead of the 2023 NBA draft.

The Boston Celtics are working very hard to work out as many prospects seen as likely to go somewhere in the second round of the 2023 NBA draft ahead of the big event, with the ball club bringing in quite a few prospective targets seen as likely to end up somewhere outside of the first round of the annual affair.

With a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) giving contending teams like the Celtics a new two way player slot on rosters to raise the total to three per team at the same time it puts up new barriers to teambuilding for teams over the so-called “second apron,” it is more important than ever to make the most of the draft to onboard talent around the roster’s margins.

Adding to our previous reporting of the team’s known workouts comes a new wave courtesy of our sister sites Rookie Wire and HoopsHype — let’s take a look at who Boston has been scoping out.

Alex Storako, Kierston Deal combine for one-hitter, Sooners defeat Weber State 16-0

Alex Storako and Kierston Deal combine for a one-hitter as Oklahoma’s offense explodes in 16-0 win over Weber State.

After a low-scoring Friday on the first day of the Hall of Fame Classic, the Oklahoma Sooners erupted for 30 runs in wins over Weber State and Auburn on Saturday.

In the first game, the Sooners beat the Wildcats 16-0. It was another strong pitching performance from [autotag]Alex Storako[/autotag], who moved to 9-0 with three shutout innings. Storako was perfect and threw struck out six in the abbreviated outing. [autotag]Kierston Deal[/autotag] pitched two innings of one-hit ball for the combined shutout.

At the plate, [autotag]Haley Lee[/autotag], [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag], and [autotag]Alynah Torres[/autotag] led the way for the Sooners’ offense.

[autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] walked and stole second to lead off the game. [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] followed that up with a walk of her own, and the two advanced on a passed ball. Having a fantastic season for the Sooners, Haley Lee came to the plate and doubled to put Oklahoma up 2-0 early in the first. Lee advanced to third and then scored on a wild pitch and a passed ball to put the Sooners up 3-0.

But Oklahoma wasn’t done in the first. [autotag]Jocelyn Erickson[/autotag] singled, and [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag] doubled to put runners on second and third for [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag]. Hansen drove both in with a single to make it 5-0.

By the end of the first, the Sooners were up 9-0 and scored without hitting a home run in the inning.

Oklahoma added four more in the second inning, including a two-run home run for Sophia Nugent. Well within run-rule territory and with Alex Storako cruising, Oklahoma added another run in the third and two more in the fourth to come away with the big win.

In the win, Haley Lee was 3-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBIs. Kinzie Hansen was 3-for-4 with one run scored and a pair of runs batted in. Alynah Torres was 2-for-3 with three RBIs.

New Orleans Saints rookie review: WR Rashid Shaheed

New Orleans Saints rookie wide receiver Rashid Shaheed impressed in 2022, though putting his season in review highlights room for growth:

We expected big things out of Chris Olave in 2022, but his New Orleans Saints rookie teammate Rashid Shaheed gave fans a lot of reason for optimism at the wide receiver position moving forwards. The former Weber State Wildcat was impressive on both offense and special teams and really proved himself to be an important player as the year progressed. He was one of a couple of undrafted free agents who helped the Saints last season, along with offensive lineman Lewis Kidd.

With that said, there are some things that could improve for him. We’ll put his season in review to highlight that room for growth:

Saints’ Rashid Shaheed could be the next big thing for New Orleans

“When my number is called, I hope to make a play.”

Saints WR Rashid Shaheed hopes to build off of his explosive debut, via @RossJacksonNOLA:

With New Orleans Saints returns specialist Deonte Harty set to miss time with a “significant” turf toe injury, the team turned to a new face last week. Wide receiver Rashid Shaheed was signed to the active roster from the Saints’ practice squad. While the optimism surrounding the undrafted free agent out of Weber State was mostly derived from his outstanding resume as a returner (the FCS all-time leader with 7 kick returns), it was the 44-yard jet sweep he ran in for a touchdown that ignited the excitement even more. Not just for the organization or the fanbase, but for his family too.

Shaheed told me that he had three family members in the audience during Sunday’s loss to the Cincinnati Bengals: his mother, his father, and his grandmother. Despite the loss, Shaheed’s family was excited for his first career touchdown which came off of his first career touch. “They were screaming and yelling,” Shaheed said. “I’m so glad that thy were able to experience that. First NFL game in the (Caesar’s Superdome). They were excited. They said it was loud, that they love New Orleans, it was a ton of fun.”

Thursday night against the Arizona Cardinals, the FCS record-holder says he’ll have 18 family members in the audience. With Glendale, Ariz. being a short trip away from his San Diego hometown, there will be a strong Shaheed contingent rooting him on. After such an explosive debut, it’s hard to imagine that more opportunities won’t come his way.

“We like the speed and what (Shaheed) brings to the offense,” offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael said this week. “So, I think that any of these guys (can) continue to grow in this offense.” The explosive wide receiver had only the one touch and nine total snaps in his first ever NFL action. Quarterback Andy Dalton let one loose to him early on in the game that came up incomplete. It’s clear that New Orleans had some shots dialed up going his way, but it is likely the packages were limited. With another week, albeit a short one, under his belt, hopefully that workload will expand.

If nothing else, getting more chances to break a punt or a kick return will present themselves. Shaheed will look to maximize those chances whether or not he gets more involved on offense. For most of us from outside, we look at the return game as having three facets. The returner, the blockers, and the tacklers. But it’s far more nuanced than simply evading tacklers. Shaheed has mastered those nuances.

“Faster, smarter, and more physical,” he said of NFL coverage units compared to the ones he faced in college. “I just try to hit the hole full speed. I know that in this league if you’re chopping your feet, pitter-pattering you don’t have a lot of time to make decisions. Decisions have to be made in a split second. Just hitting the hole and i feel like once a couple things are cleaned up, we’ll be able to break a lot of returns this year.”

It’s fascinating to hear Shaheed break down his process considering that he didn’t became the FCS’s most dangerous returner until he’d gotten to college. It wasn’t a big part of his repertoire in high school. He had returned some kicks and it was clear there was a skills set available there. It wasn’t until he arrived at Weber State that special teams coordinator (now the Utah linebackers coach) Colton Swan helped him develop into the threat he became. Adding punt returning responsibilities to his ledger.

NFL returnmen Devin Hester, Tyreek Hill and Dante Hall were on Shaheed’s list as those he has studied over the years. Hester being the headliner. Hopefully in a few years, he’ll see his name added to another young returner’s list. He has a lot of opportunity in New Orleans to raise his profile with the opportunities available to him and the coaching of an expert like Saints special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi.

Shaheed could be another blooming NFL star to come from the undrafted ranks. Some have questioned why he even went undrafted in the first place, especially after Harty took turned the same trajectory into a rookie All-Pro season. The former Weber State Wildcat hasn’t even run an official 40-yard dash, though he estimates he’d be in the 4.3- to 4.4-second area.

None of that matters now, though. For Shaheed, as he sat on the Superdome sidelines following his explosive touchdown, it was all about the moment he was in rather than the moments of the past. “The atmosphere was incredible,” he recalled.” Once I scored and got to the sideline, it hit me like, ‘This is real life.’ It was an incredible feeling hearing the cheers and roars. Nothing like it in that Dome.”

Following his NFL debut, Shaheed says he kept the football and jersey he wore. He said he had a touchdown celebration prepared, but it all escaped his mind in the moment. But the moment he’ll remember most was his father after the game. Who, despite the loss, was excited for his son. They shared a hug and took in the excitement following an unprecedented moment.

Shaheed will see a fair share of action again Thursday night against the Cardinals. While fellow rookie receiver Chris Olave is set to make his return from a concussion, veteran wideouts Michael Thomas and Jarvis Landry have been ruled out. Whether by explosive return, run or reception, Saints fans will be at the edge of their seats when the ball is in his hands, along with the group of 18 family members cheering him on at State Farm Arena. For Shaheed, it’s all about helping the team. “When my number is called, I hope to make a play.”

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WATCH: Saints rookie Rashid Shaheed scores 44-yard TD run

WATCH: Saints rookie Rashid Shaheed scores 44-yard TD run on a jet sweep

[sendtonews_embed video_id=”xWByWcScrt-2303475-7498″]

Welcome to the NFL, Rashid Shaheed. The former Weber State wide receiver caught the New Orleans Saints’ attention on kick returns at the college level, but they put some of those skills to good use in Sunday’s game with the Cincinnati Bengals. The Saints dialed up a jet sweep for Shaheed flowing to the right side, and all it took was a missed tackle by Eli Apple for him to fly 44 yards downfield for a score; NFL Next Gen Stats tracking found that Shaheed hit 19.5 miles per hour on the carry.

It’s wildly impressive to see out of the undrafted rookie. Shaheed missed most of the summer recovering from an ACL injury, and this was his first touch in the game (he previously beat Apple on a vertical route, breaking to the inside, but quarterback Andy Dalton threw outside for an incomplete pass). Hopefully he can generate more big plays like this with so many injuries piling up at the position for New Orleans.

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