Chicago Bears Offseason Stock Watch: Duke Shelley

Is the stock trending up or down for the Chicago Bears second-year cornerback Duke Shelley?

When the Chicago Bears drafted Duke Shelley out of Kansas State, it was met with some criticism.  However, as fans started to come familiar with the pick, it started to become clear that the Bears may have had themselves a gem of a draft pick.

Shelley has some comparisons to Bryce Callahan and was drafted to be a long term replacement for him. Of course. after one year, he did not beat out Buster Skrine. Skrine is back in year two, so there is a question as to what kind of step forward Shelley can take in year two.

However, it goes beyond Skrine. The Bears also drafted Kindle Vildor. Considering he profiles as a slot corner, and the Bears drafted Jaylon Johnson, signed Artie Burns and have Kevin Toliver to compete on the outside, Vildor very well may be more slot competition.

So, coming into 2019, Shelley was an unknown that many were excited about. He was a player who was going to push Buster Skrine. Coming into 2020, there are very few who believe he can compete with Skrine after showing little upside as a rookie. Beyond that, he is not just competing with Skrine. Shelley is now competing with Vildor for backup duty. Going from potential starter to potentially backup is a sign for him to see his stock trend down.

There are arguments that in his second year he would be ready to take a step forward, but the Bears going out of their way to add so many cornerbacks shows that they did not see enough in Duke Shelley in 2019.

Offseason Stock Down