Shepard was the last player to run out of the tunnel during pregame introductions. Moments later, he joined captains Andrew Thomas and Xavier McKinney at midfield for the pregame coin toss.
The Giants tried to augment Shepard’s statistics by getting him one last touchdown. Late in the second quarter, Xavier McKinney intercepted his second pass, giving the Giants possession at the Eagles’ 12-yard line with one minute remaining in the half. On the first play, Tyrod Taylor threw into the end zone for Shepard, but the ball was intercepted by Reed Blankenship.
In the third quarter, Shepard had a 6-yard reception nullified by Mark Glowinski’s holding penalty. His first catch that counted gained seven yards in the final minute of the quarter.
Late in the game, the Giants had the ball at the Philadelphia 9-yard line when Shepard ran around left end on his only rushing attempt in the game. But he was stopped three yards short of the goal line, and two plays later, Mason Crosby kicked a 21-yard field goal for the Giants’ final points.
Shepard also caught passes for one and 10 yards in the fourth quarter.
The first question Daboll fielded at his postgame news conference was about Shepard.
“Good teammate, has a lot of energy,” he said. “He’s been here for a bit. This is the only team he’s played for. This is an important organization to him, but I will just say he’s a really good person and a good father. I’ve got a lot of respect for Shep and toward the end there, we were trying to get him bumped up there, gave him a look pass and I told him younger Shep might have made that guy miss and run in, but it was good.”
Shepard’s contributions go far beyond his statistics, particularly his willingness to mentor the young receivers who ultimately replaced him on the field.
“I can’t say enough good things about him ever since I came in as a rookie,” said second-year pro Wan’Dale Robinson, who led the team this season with 60 catches. “That’s been my mentor and who I go to ask about anything. I mean, he’s been through just about all of it. We did our ACL rehab together and things like that. I can’t say enough good things about him. He’s a great teammate and a great person.”
Which is all he ever wanted to be. Shepard is most proud of being characterized as the epitome of what a Giants player should be, a valued teammate on and off the field.
“It means so much, because that is the reason why I play this game,…
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