Ja'Marr Chase vs Khalil Shakir: Who Should You Start?
Ja'Marr Chase and Khalil Shakir are at different tiers heading into 2026. The Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver averaged 15.7 PPG in 2025, a full 7.6 points per game ahead of Khalil Shakir's 8.1 with the Buffalo Bills. That kind of gap doesn't close on matchup alone.
That 7.6-point weekly advantage for Ja'Marr Chase is meaningful but not automatic. Fantasy football is a week-to-week sport, and the answer to "who should I start" often changes based on opponent, recent form, and game environment. Season averages set the baseline; weekly context makes the call.
Target volume is the story here. Ja'Marr Chase saw 185 targets in 2025, while Khalil Shakir drew 95. That workload gap usually translates into a higher weekly floor for Ja'Marr Chase, even in weeks where Khalil Shakir posts the bigger ceiling game. Consistency-minded managers lean toward target share; boom-bust managers chase the upside.
Ja'Marr Chase has his bye in Week 10, and Khalil Shakir rests in Week 7. Managers rostering both need waiver wire depth at wide receiver for those two weeks, and that is exactly the kind of planning DraftCall's matchup engine surfaces automatically so you are not scrambling on a Sunday morning.
