The passing game has been insanely productive this year, but they're also doing facing loaded boxes at one of the highest rates in the league. Essentially what we have right now - at least to this point - is defenses saying they don't really respect our WR but they are getting open enough and Maye is so insanely elite throwing the ball this year that we're shredding them downfield.
Have to think that eventually defenses will flip and play to make us beat them with the running game. Not sure our WRs will get enough separation against defenses prioritizing coverage, so we'll have to beat them with the run game. And I'm not sure our run game is good enough to lean on like that where you can ride it all the way to victory even against lighter boxes.
Adding or developing a third WR will be, IMO, important to counter this counter from defenses. The coverage we've face so far is less than the coverage we will going forward IMO. So another target to really round out 3 WR packages will help offset that. Hollins is a nice little package player but not that guy. Douglas has been coming on a bit lately, but since Diggs is at his best in the slot and gets forced outside by Douglas that's a bit of cannibalizing production if Douglas is the guy. Williams is the guy on the roster with the profile to really be that third option if he can develop, but that hasn't been the case so far.
Rashid Shaheed would have been super interesting as that third guy. With his speed, how good Boutte has been downfield, and of course Maye throwing the ball that pretty much forces defenses to lighten the box. Also opens up a ton of room for Diggs out of the slot and Henry in those intermediate parts of the field, as well as Henderson and Stevenson out of the backfield. I do kind of wonder though if, even though they do it differently (one with speed, other with body positioning and route running) Shaheed/Boutte is a bit too duplicative as guys who both are downfield guys. You don't want that to be your only tool in the tool box, so balance is good too.
