Nehemiah Shelton (born September 13, 1999) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

for the

Memphis Showboats The Memphis Showboats were an American football franchise in the United States Football League. They entered the league in its expansion in 1984 and made the 1985 playoffs, losing in the semifinal round to the Oakland Invaders. Perhaps the ...

of the United Football League (UFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the Long Beach City Vikings and the

San Jose State Spartans The San Jose State Spartans are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent San José State University. SJSU sports teams compete in the Mountain West Conference at the NCAA Division I level, with football competing in the Football Bowl S ...

Early life and high school

Shelton grew up in

Gardena, California Gardena is a city located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 61,027 at the 2020 census, up from 58,829 at the 2010 census. Until 2014, the U.S. census cited the City of Gardena as the ...

, and attended Junípero Serra High School. During his high school career, he played as a cornerback and a wide receiver and made three pass interceptions and seven pass break-ups as a senior. Also as a senior, he played in the 2017 Lions All-Star Game in

El Segundo, California El Segundo ( , ; ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located on Santa Monica Bay, it was incorporated on January 18, 1917, and is part of the South Bay Cities Council of Governments. The population was 17,272 as of t ...

. Shelton would commit to

Long Beach City College Long Beach City College (LBCC) is a public community college in Long Beach, California, United States. It was established in 1927 and is divided into two campuses, the Liberal Arts Campus (LAC) in Lakewood Village and the Trades, Technology, an ...

College career

Long Beach City

During his true freshman season, he played in 11 games, finishing the season with 46 total tackles (35 solo and 11 assisted), three tackles for loss for seven yards, four interceptions for 43 yards and seven pass break-ups. He was also a first-team All-Central league selection for helping the Vikings win the 2017 Patriotic Bowl.

San Jose State

On December 20, 2017, Shelton committed to play

San Jose State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the List of oldest schools in California, oldest public university on the West Coast of ...

. During the 2018 season, he saw action in three games as a reserve cornerback. He finished the season with four tackles, a pass interception and a pass breakup. During the 2019 season, he played in all 12 games and started eight of them, finishing the season with 42 total tackles (34 solo and eight assisted), three pass interceptions for 14 yards, seven pass breakups, a fumble recovery for 27 yards and two forced fumbles. During the 2020 season, he played in and started all eight games, finishing the season with 38 total tackles (31 solo and seven assisted), a tackle for loss, four pass breakups and one fumble recovery for 29 yards. During the 2021 season, he played in and started 10 games, finishing the season with 62 total tackles (47 solo and 15 assisted), two pass interceptions for 13 yards and 12 pass breakups. During the 2022 season, he played in and started all 12 games, finishing the season with 49 total tackles (36 solo and 13 assisted), three tackles for loss, two pass interceptions for 23 yards and eight pass breakups. Shelton was invited to play at the 2023 East–West Shrine Bowl.

Professional career

Memphis Showboats

Shelton was selected in the seventh round (51st overall) of the 2023 USFL draft by the

New York Jets

On August 17, 2023, Shelton was signed to the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

after going unselected in the

2023 NFL draft The 2023 NFL draft was the 88th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2023 NFL season, 2023 season. The NFL draft, draft was held outside of Kansas City Union Station, Union Station i ...

. He was waived on August 29, 2023, but he was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was released on October 3, 2023.

Memphis Showboats (second stint)

On October 18, 2023, Shelton was re-signed to the Memphis Showboats.

New York Jets (second stint)

On July 22, 2024, Shelton was re-signed to the New York Jets. He was waived five days later, after the team signed

Kendall Sheffield Kendall Sheffield (born May 30, 1996) is an American professional football cornerback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes, and was selected by the Atlanta Falcons i ...

. He was re-signed to the team on August 19, 2024. He was waived on August 27, 2024.

Los Angeles Chargers

On October 9, 2024, Shelton was signed to the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC W ...

practice squad. He was released on October 19.

Memphis Showboats (third stint)

On January 20, 2025, Shelton re-signed with the Memphis Showboats.

References

External links

Long Beach City Vikings bioSan Jose State Spartans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shelton, Nehemiah 1999 births Living people Players of American football from Los Angeles County, California Sportspeople from Gardena, California American football cornerbacks Junípero Serra High School (Gardena, California) alumni Long Beach City Vikings football players San Jose State Spartans football players Memphis Showboats (2022) players New York Jets players Los Angeles Chargers players