Who Should I Start? Cooper Kupp or Khalil Shakir

Wednesday, May 28, 10:14 PM

The Athletic's Michael-Shawn Dugar writes that new Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp could work underneath in the middle of the field in his first year with the team, with Jaxon Smith-Njigba serving as the big-play threat deeper down the field. Kupp and Smith-Njigba have overlapping skill sets, and general manager John Schneider said the use of tight splits will make the two wideouts hard to defend. Seattle could align JSN more out wide as opposed to in the slot, where he spent 77.4% of his snaps last season. Smith-Njigba led all receivers in yards (956) and catches (79) from the slot in a breakout campaign. It will be interesting to see how offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak uses both Kupp and Smith-Njigba in 2025. Kupp is on the wrong side of 30 and has missed five or more games three seasons in a row due to injuries. JSN has the higher ceiling, and we can't count on a ton of volume from Kupp at this point in his career.

Tuesday, February 25, 1:32 PM

ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that the Buffalo Bills and wide receiver Khalil Shakir agreed to four-year contract extension on Tuesday that is worth up to $60.2 million, including $32 million guaranteed at signing with $18 million paid in the first 12 months. The new deal ties Shakir to Buffalo through the 2029 season. After the Bills traded Stefon Diggs away and let Gabe Davis walk in free agency last offseason, Shakir stepped up as Buffalo's No. 1 wideout to lead the team with 100 targets, 76 catches and 821 yards while scoring four touchdowns in 15 regular-season games (nine starts). The 25-year-old slot man also had six catches in each of the team's three playoff games. He's now locked in with the Bills for the foreseeable future and should continue to be quarterback Josh Allen's favorite weapon in the passing game with a solid floor for fantasy.