Beloved Former Viking Promoted for Thursday Night Football
The New York Giants host the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday Night Football, and one treasured former Minnesota Vikings defender will be available to play.
Beloved Former Viking Promoted for Thursday Night Football
He’s Duke Shelley, and the Giants elevated him from the practice squad on Thursday afternoon.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport tweeted mere hours before TNF: “Elevations for TNF: The Giants elevated FB Jakob Johnson and DB Duke Shelley for tonight from the PS. The Cowboys elevated DE Carl Lawson and DB Amani Oruwariye from the PS.”
Shelley signed with the Giants for practice squad duty on August 29th, two days after the Vikings dropped him during 53-man roster trimdowns. On Thursday night, he’ll be available for action and likely experience some special teams snaps.
Shelley joined the Vikings in September 2022 on the team’s practice squad, a cast-off from the Chicago Bears, leaving fans to wonder, “Who’s the guy with the cool name?” For a while, Shelley was “just a guy” signed to the practice squad who’d play if cornerback depth dwindled to slim pickings. Indeed, Shelley was needed because of injuries to Andrew Booth, Cameron Dantzler, and Akayleb Evans — and he absolutely thrived.
The 6th-Round draft pick by the Chicago Bears began experiencing playing time versus the Buffalo Bills in 2022 — in one of the wildest NFL games anyone will ever witness. Before that opportunity, Shelley played a handful of special teams snaps but evidently wasn’t trusted on the field for defensive duty.
Well, he became trusted — really quickly — and was a defensive saving grace for the 2022 team. Shelley snagged his first career interception out of the sky against his former team in Week 18 that season. He tweeted about the Bears after the Week 18 win, “They had to feel how disrespected I felt when they cut me.”
When it was all said and done in 2022, Shelley was classified as the NFL’s fourth-best cornerback, according to Pro Football Focus, tallying an 82.9 grade. Only Sauce Gardner (87.9, NYJ), Patrick Surtain (86.8, DEN), and Jalen Ramsey (86.4, LAR) outperformed Shelley.
But when the 2023 offseason rolled around, Minnesota neglected to re-sign the 2022 standout, and he landed with the Las Vegas Raiders. He failed to make the Raiders’ active roster and later signed with the Los Angeles Rams, where he played sparingly.
The Vikings then surprisingly re-signed Shelley this summer, and some envisioned a roster spot for the veteran corner. Ultimately, undrafted free agent Dwight McGlothern took his spot.
Shelley’s Giants are five-point home underdogs for TNF.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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