Duke Shelley Got His Revenge
Ted Schwerzler
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The Minnesota Vikings entered Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears with little to play for. The number two seed in the NFC was dependent solely upon the San Francisco 49ers winning against a David Blough quarterbacked Arizona Cardinals team. For Duke Shelley, none of that mattered.
Ed Donatell’s defense has not been good for a majority of this season. Despite Minnesota compiling a solid 13-win season, it’s been a reflection of the offense putting up points. Kirk Cousins has long been convicted of being a bad quarterback in the biggest moments, but he has done plenty to reverse that notion this season.
Entering the final week of the season, Cousins had tallied eight fourth quarter comebacks to tie former Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford for the single-season NFL lead. During Week 18 of this expanded schedule, Cousins didn’t need another late comeback, and instead bowed out at halftime.
For the Chicago Bears, there was relatively nothing to play for. Justin Fields had been ruled out coming into the contest, and arguably the worst quarterback we’ve seen in recent NFL history was going to start. Nathan Peterman was benched early in the contest after showing ineffectiveness, and the Bears ineptitude was only compounded upon as they went to backup Tim Boyle.
Drawing his fourth straight start for Minnesota, Duke Shelley got his revenge against his former team. All season the Vikings secondary has been questionable at best. Cam Dantzler missed significant time with an injury, and second round pick Andrew Booth Jr. found himself shelved as well. Over the past few weeks, it was former waiver claim Shelley that forced himself into the starting lineup, and he put a stamp on it Sunday.
Shelley had plenty to prove on Sunday. Working through the vast majority of the game with other options sidelined, he made an impact early and often. He recorded his first interception of his NFL career by picking off Boyle.
Chicago benefits with the loss as the Houston Texans inexplicably beat the Indianapolis Colts to remove their draft standing. Matt Eberflus may not wind up being the Bears coach a season from now, but it is more than apparent that Fields is the option of the future and building around him is a must.
There is little reason to find the Texans winning a meaningless game, but Chicago did a good job at cycling in poor quarterbacks to cement their future. Shelley can find himself happy to be elevated among a starting Vikings lineup, but there has to be a level of excitement in sticking it to a former club as well. Minnesota has plenty of question marks when it comes to playoff contention, but finding another capable cornerback is a significant come up.
Maybe Dantzler emerges as a preferred option again as the Vikings look to a Super Bowl ring, but there is no denying that Shelley has emerged as a saving grace down the stretch.
Ted Schwerzler is a blogger from the Twin Cities that is focused on all things Minnesota Twins and Minnesota Vikings. He’s active on Twitter and writes weekly for Twins Daily. As a former college athlete and avid sports fan, covering our pro teams with a passion has always seemed like such a natural outlet.