The Buffalo Bills don’t have much drama in training camp, with the top of the depth chart set across nearly all positions on offense and defense.
But there could be at least one interesting battle at the bottom of the wide receiving depth chart, with a former practice squad stalwart pushing out a veteran who was one of this offseason’s biggest additions on offense.
Veteran receiver Laviskha Shenault could be losing his grip on a spot, with a new projection putting him on the wrong side of the roster bubble.
Lavishka Shenault’s Late-Summer Challenge
SI.com writer Randi Gurzi made an early projection of the team’s final 53-man roster, with the top five spots likely set in stone — Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman, Curtis Samuel, and Joshua Palmer.
Shenault, who came to the team after his contract with the Seattle Seahawks expired, was once seen as a strong candidate to earn a roster spot but has seen Tyrell Shavers surpass him in training camp. The SI.com writer predicted that Shavers would ultimately steal the final spot over Shenault.
Gurzi added that fellow offseason addition Elijah Moore could also be losing his grip on a roster spot, but is still hanging on for now.
“Wide receiver will be interesting as K.J. Hamler and Laviska Shenault will be in the mix due to their return skills but it’s hard to see Tyrell Shavers being cut,” Gurzi wrote. “Elijah Moore could be in danger, but he was running crisp routes against the Giants and isn’t going to go down without a fight.”
Shenault has a track record of success in the NFL, though has seen his production decline in recent years. After posting back-to-back seasons of more than 600 yards after coming into the league with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2020, he has not topped 300 yards since then. He does have some versatility as a return specialist, but there is tight competition for that job in Buffalo this summer with several players seeing time as returners.
Tyrell Shavers Making the Most of His Opportunities
Shavers joined the Bills as an undrafted free agent in 2023 and spent most of his first two seasons on the practice squad, but seized a big opportunity last year. With the Bills leading the New York Jets 33-0 in a Week 17 game, the team pulled their starters and put Shavers in at wide receiver.
Shavers caught a pass from backup quarterback Mitch Trubisky — on the first target of his NFL career — and raced 69 yards through the defense for a touchdown. It would be his only catch of the season, but did enough to showcase his talent and potential.
Shavers continued to build on that potential this preseason, making a big 58-yard catch against the New York Giants in Saturday’s preseason opener to set the Bills up for a late first-half field goal.
After the game, Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady shared praise for the 25-year-old.
“I trust Shaves. I think that’s a word that is loosely thrown out. But when you have trust in a player and you know they’re going to be where they need to be, when they need to be there, both from a quarterback and from a coordinator perspective, it makes our lives so much easier,” Brady said. “He’s a guy that’s just continued to work. Look, he was hurt a couple of days ago, right? You guys saw kind of what happened to him, and he’s not 100 percent, but he’s like, I got to get out there, I got to practice.”
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