INDIANAPOLIS -- The Buffalo Bills announced that they have given one of Josh Allen's favorite targets, wide receiver Khalil Shakir, a four-year extension.
The deal is worth up to $60.2 million, including $32 million guaranteed at signing, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Tuesday.
Shakir -- a fifth-round pick out of Boise State -- is the first of the Bills' 2022 draft picks to be signed to a long-term extension. The team's leading wide receiver in 2024 had one more year left on his rookie deal, and the extension keeps him under contract through the 2029 season.
"You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone -- fans, players, anyone -- in our building to say anything negative about Khalil and what he's brought," Bills general manager Brandon Beane said Tuesday from the NFL scouting combine. "The guy is a true lunch-pail Buffalonian. I mean, I know he's not from Buffalo, but he doesn't say anything, he just shows up every single day.
"He's Mr. Dependable, and when the ball's thrown his way, he usually comes down with it. I'm sure everyone on our team that's coming back will be excited to have Khalil knowing ... and we're going to count on him even more, not only on the field but his leadership going forward."
The extension also includes $18 million being paid in the first 12 months.
Shakir, 25, was the only Bills receiver on the 53-man roster this past year who had previously caught a pass from Allen in a game. He is coming off the best season of his career by far, catching 76 passes -- on 100 targets -- for 821 yards and four touchdowns.
Including playoffs, Allen has completed 81% of his passes to Shakir over the last two seasons, the highest completion percentage among 60 QB-WR combos with at least 100 targets over that span.
The slot receiver was a reliable and key contributor to the offense, leading the Bills in yards, receptions and targets and third among all wide receivers in yards after catch per reception (7.9) and third in the NFL in total yards after catch (599). He had one drop in 2024.
Other candidates for extension from the Bills' 2022 draft class include running back James Cook, linebacker Terrel Bernard and cornerback Christian Benford.
"It's a large puzzle, and so, you're trying to find out, we've got a number of guys that you could say, 'Hey, (they) deserved extensions,'" Beane said. "You also have a cap, and we're trying to, we've been waiting, we got some clarity last week on the range of the cap. Some moves you do can acquire cap space; others can cost you.
"So we're balancing all of that while having conversations, and some of the conversations haven't started yet. You don't want too many going at the same time. But we'll continue those ... just because we don't get an extension done now or before the start of the league year doesn't mean we won't in the league year or you guys have seen us do them in the summer as well."