7 former Vikings who have been giant letdowns for their new team in 2023

Cleveland Browns pass rusher Za'Darius Smith
Cleveland Browns pass rusher Za'Darius Smith / Scott Taetsch/GettyImages
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Duke Shelley - CB (Los Angeles Rams)

In 2022, Duke Shelley surprisingly emerged as the best cornerback on the entire Vikings roster. A former sixth-round draft pick of the Chicago Bears, Shelly was elevated from Minnesota's practice squad in the middle of the 2022 season, and he quickly made sure to make the most of his opportunities.

He wound up starting five games for the Vikings last year, and he went on to finish with the team's best pass coverage grade from PFF.

Shelley was scheduled to become a free agent in 2023, but most assumed Minnesota would just re-sign him, given how well he performed during the 2022 campaign.

Shockingly, the Vikings didn't re-sign Shelly, and he eventually wound up signing a one-year contract with the Las Vegas Raiders. Unfortunately for the 27-year-old cornerback, the Raiders didn't select him for their 2023 regular-season roster.

After he was let go by Las Vegas, he was quickly signed by the Los Angeles Rams, where he has remained for the entire 2023 season.

With the Rams, Shelley definitely hasn't had the success that he had with Minnesota in 2022. He was placed on injured reserve a few weeks ago, but before that, he had only appeared in 10 percent of the Rams' defensive snaps.

In a total of 11 games for Los Angeles this season, Shelley was only able to accumulate eight tackles and two pass breakups.