Super Bowl bound Rashid Shaheed craves New Orleans' iconic flavors, a poignant reminder of the Crescent City's embrace even amidst championship pursuit.
In the high-stakes, hyper-regimented world of Super Bowl week, most players are focused on one thing: the playbook. But for Seattle Seahawks star and former New Orleans Saint Rashid Shaheed, the mind is wandering—not to the New England Patriots' secondary, but to a steaming plate of crawfish and a sugar-dusted pile of beignets.
Ahead of his Super Bowl LX appearance in Santa Clara, Shaheed recently admitted to reporters that while he’s thrilled to be playing for a ring, he’s deeply "missing the food in New Orleans." It’s a sentiment that rings true for anyone who has ever spent time in the Crescent City, but for a player traded away mid-season, it’s a poignant reminder that while you can take the playmaker out of the Big Easy, you can’t quite take the Big Easy out of the man.
More Than Just a Meal
For Shaheed, the "flavors" of New Orleans aren't just about calories; they’re about the culture that embraced him when he was an undrafted underdog out of Weber State. New Orleans doesn't just root for its players; it feeds them.
The Connection: In NOLA, food is the universal language of hospitality. Shaheed's nostalgia for the "crawfish and beignets" is a proxy for the connection he felt with a fanbase that treated him like family from day one.
The Contrast: Seattle is a world-class city with incredible seafood, but let’s be honest, Dungeness crab doesn't hit the same as a spicy backyard boil when you're used to the humidity and heat of South Louisiana.
The Mid-Season Void
The timing of Shaheed’s departure, a whirlwind trade in November 2025 left a literal and metaphorical bad taste in the mouths of many Saints fans. Seeing "Sheed" thrive in Seattle, leading the league in return touchdowns and helping the Seahawks clinch the NFC, is a bittersweet pill for New Orleans to swallow.
However, his open pining for the city’s culinary staples shows that the love is mutual. It’s rare to see a player on the verge of the biggest game of his life look back with such genuine affection for his former home.
"I miss the crawfish, I miss the beignets, I miss the people... I miss the hospitality." — Rashid Shaheed, via LockOn Sports with Ross Jackson
The Super Bowl "Hunger"
There is a poetic irony in Shaheed’s current situation. He is currently "starving" for the comforts of New Orleans, yet he is the hungriest player on the field. That explosive speed that made him a fan favorite in the Caesars Superdome is now Seattle’s greatest weapon.
If Shaheed manages to break off one of his signature 90-plus yard returns on Sunday, you can bet there will be plenty of folks in the French Quarter raising a glass (and perhaps a powdered sugar-covered pastry) in his honor.
The Lasting Taste
Rashid Shaheed might be wearing Seahawks neon green these days, but his heart and his stomach, remain firmly in the 504. In a sports world often defined by cold business decisions and "moving on," Shaheed’s longing for New Orleans flavors is a refreshing reminder of how much a city’s soul can impact the athletes who play there.