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          Saints close gap on Rams with Derek Carr to Rashid Shaheed touchdown pass

          AP Photo/Darron Cummings
          • Katherine Terrell, ESPN Staff WriterDec 22, 2023, 02:25 AM
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              Katherine Terrell came back to ESPN to cover the New Orleans Saints in the summer of 2022. She left the company in 2019 after joining in 2016 to cover the Cincinnati Bengals. Katherine is a graduate of LSU and a Baton Rouge, Louisiana, native, and she has covered the NFL since 2013. You can follow Katherine on Twitter: @Kat_Terrell
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          INGLEWOOD, Calif. -- The New Orleans Saints needed to score quickly with the end of the first half approaching in Thursday night's game against the Los Angeles Rams.

          So they looked to their fastest player to do the job.

          Saints quarterback Derek Carr found wide receiver Rashid Shaheed open down the field for a 45-yard touchdown for the team's first score of the night. Shaheed's touchdown cut the Rams' lead to 10-7 with two minutes left in the second quarter.

          Shaheed had several steps on the nearest defender for the score, which was his fourth receiving touchdown of the season. According to ESPN Stats & Information, it was Shaheed's fifth reception of 40+ air yards this season, the most in the NFL and the most by a Saints receiver since ESPN began tracking air yards in 2006.

          It was also Shaheed's fourth career receiving TD of at least 40 yards, which is tied for the fourth-most in the NFL since he entered the league as an undrafted rookie last season. Two of his four receiving touchdowns this season have been at least 40 yards or more.