RENTON — Asked earlier this week about the Los Angeles Chargers coming to Lumen Field Sunday with an 0-3 record, Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said he’s not considering that number when preparing for this week’s contest.

“It’s three games,” Macdonald said. “So what kind of sample size are we talking about?”

His point? It’s too early to making sweeping judgments about anything in the NFL. 

And while in this case he was talking about a team, Macdonald would also surely say the same about statistical trends for players.

Still, as the Seahawks prepare for Week 4, fans may notice how the initial three games have evolved for a trio of players for whom there were high expectations entering the season — receiver Rashid Shaheed, tight end Elijah Arroyo and rush end Dante Fowler — whose numbers so far haven’t matched the hype.

Of course, the numbers may not tell the whole story.

Let’s look at each player and their production so far.

Shaheed, acquired in a trade with the Saints last November, was a vital part of Seattle’s Super Bowl run with three returns of kickoffs or punts for touchdowns after his arrival.

Slated to become a free agent, he then signed a three-year, $51 million deal in March to not only continue to return kicks/punts but also serve as one of the team’s three main receivers along with Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Cooper Kupp.

The hope was having a full offseason and training camp would mean Shaheed would make a bigger statistical impact offensively than last season, when he had 15 catches for 188 yards in nine games. 

But so far, Shaheed has six catches for 53 yards with no touchdowns on 12 targets. He also has two drops.

The averages of 2.0 receptions per game and 8.8 yards per reception are each off his career averages of 2.9 and 14.4.

Playing time isn’t the issue. He has played 55% of snaps this year compared to 48% with the Seahawks after his arrival last season.

What is undoubtedly playing a role is the continued stunning production of Smith-Njigba, who is putting up even bigger numbers so far this year than last season when he won NFL Offensive Player of the Year honors.

While the Seahawks often make Smith-Njigba the No. 1 read on a pass play, offensive coordinator Brian Fleury also said there’s times the ball just ends up going JSN’s way even when he’s not.

“There’s a lot of plays in the plan that are designed to go to other people, and in certain situations, obviously, we lean toward Jax because of what he brings to the table,” Fleury said.

Shaheed is also having to learn another new offense after Fleury took over for Klint Kubiak. Shaheed has had three different OCs since the beginning of the 2024 season. 

And again, it’s early, as Macdonald noted this week when asked about Shaheed.

“I know the ball’s finding Jax a lot right now,” Macdonald said. “Sheed’s doing a great job. Because of the question, I’m assuming you’re thinking the ball’s not finding him as much. But it will.”

Arroyo, the 50^th overall pick of the 2025 draft out of Miami, showed big-play promise with 15 receptions for 179 yards and a touchdown in 13 games last season before suffering a knee injury and missing the final four games.

Like Shaheed, he elicited much excitement for a possible breakout this year with his play in the offseason program and preseason. 

And like Shaheed, it so far has yet to pay off in raw stats — Arroyo has one catch for 13 yards, in Week 2 at Arizona. That is also his only target.

Many of the same reasons for why Shaheed has yet to put up big numbers apply to Arroyo — there are only so many targets to go around and when Smith-Njigba is playing the way he is, there’s even fewer for everyone else.

Arroyo is also part of what is a deep tight end room led by AJ Barner, who so far has played 161 of 187 snaps (86%). 

That essentially means the only way for other tight ends to get on the field is on two-tight end sets.

Seattle has been using those a lot. According to SharpFootballAnalysis.com, Seattle has had two tight ends on the field 31.5% of the time, seventh-most in the NFL.

The next most-used tight end, however, has been Eric Saubert, if barely. Saubert has 45 snaps while Arroyo has 44. 

Seattle is also using Brady Russell — officially listed as a fullback but who often fulfills tight end responsibilities on plays — more than ever. Russell has played 60 snaps but has been lined up in a receiving position on 32, according to Pro Football Focus.

Arroyo has been used as a receiver 32 times and as a blocker on the other 12.

After seeing rush end Boye Mafe sign a three-year contract worth up to $60 million with the Bengals, the Seahawks eventually signed Fowler — a veteran of 12 NFL seasons and the third overall pick in 2015 — to help replace his snaps. Fowler, 32, got a much less expensive contract — one year at a $2.5 million base and $2.5 million in incentives.

Statically, Fowler has yet to make much of an impact — he has no tackles. 

He also has played just 39 snaps (21%), far off the 50% Mafe played last season. 

Part of that is because Derick Hall is playing 10% more than last season. Seattle is also using Leonard Williams a bit more as an end — 10% of snaps compared to 5% a year ago — as well as using safety Nick Emmanwori some the past two games as an edge rusher.

While he has no conventional stats, Fowler has three hurries in 21 pass rush snaps, including two against Arizona. 

“He really could have had two sacks (against Arizona),” said defensive coordinator Aden Durde, who also coached Fowler in Dallas.

Those plays showed Durde it may just be a matter of time for Fowler.

“I just think that it’s more opportunities,” he said. “Opportunities are finite because you’ve got a lot of players rotating. … It takes a few weeks to get your feet underneath you, get your mentality, make sure you’re warm at the right moments and ready to strike. I feel that he is getting there.”