The last♎ name “Shell” ⭕carries a lot of weight in Oakland.
Over the course of a 14-year career from 1968-82, left tackle Art Shell became a legend in Raider nation, going to eight Pro Bowls and helping to deliver two of the club’s three Super Bow꧅l titles. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fℱame in 1989.
On Sunday, another Shell will ღmeet the Black Hole. Only this one will be greeted with taunts instead of cheers.
Jets right tackle Brandon Shell, Art’s great nephew, has watched his share of old highlights 𒐪from the Oakland Coliseum.
“I’ve seen some tape of [Art] and Gene U🅠pshaw from whꦇen they played back in the day,” he said.
A fifth-round pick in the 2015 draft, Shell won the starti💦ng job over Ben Ijalana, and ♋continues to progress well in his second season.
“He’s been a physical guy, but now he’s getting the ha♛ng🌌 of it,” head coach Todd Bowles said. “The more he plays, the better he gets and the game slows down for him.”
While the 25-year-old has taken bits from his great uncle’s arsenal, he noted that football has changed tre💃mendously since then.
“There’s a lot more speed rushers [now],” Shell said. “Back then, there was more power. You really didn’t see a lot of guys running full force, coming off the edge as defensive ends𝓀. So it’s kind of different.”
Raiders star Khalil Mack, who will go head-to-head with Shell this♕ week, is perhaps the embodiment of the game’s evolution — an explosive, high-motor end skilled at disrupting the run and getting to the quarterback.
At 6-foot-3, 250 pounds, Mack ꦿusually lines up on the left side, which would position him opposite Shell. Though all members of the Jets’ line will need to contribute, the lynch pin of Oakland’s talented front is likely to be Shell’s primary responsibility for much of the contest.
S🍰ince 2015, Mack leads the league in total sacks with 26 and has forced seven fumblesꦕ.
“There’s a lot of challenges with [Mack],” offe🧸nsive coordinator John Morton said. “He’s probably one of the best rushers in football.”
“He could wr🌳eck a game. So we have to make sure we account for him wherever he is at.”
Morton is right — Ma🎶ck has proven capable of single-handedly wrec💖king games. Against the Broncos in December 2015, Mack became the sixth player in NFL history to record five sacks in a game, as the Raiders pulled off a 15-12 upset.
“He’s a very good player,” Shell said. “I give﷽ him all the credit in the worl🌃d, but I just have to go out there and play my game.”
His game was solid in Week 1. Though the offense struggled to establish the run, Shell surrendered m🍎erely one pressure on 42 pass-blocking snaps, per Pro Football Focus. That helped give Josh McCown plenty of time in the pocket.
Of course, Shell wasn’t facing the NFL’s reigning defensive player of thꦰe💛 year.
It seems fitting that 𝔉his biggest challenge yet would come in the same city that his last name is featured on opposing jerseys.
“I’ve never been to Oakland,” Shell said. “This is my first time going to the stadiu♒m. So I’m very excited to go. I’m very excited to play.”