Shanle walked-on at the University of Nebraska and earned a football scholarship after he redshirted in the fall of 1998. As a redshirt freshman in 1999, he appeared in every game, mainly as the up-front blocker on the punt return team. As a sophomore in 2000, he played in all twelve games with ten starts at strongside linebacker, making 55 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, one sack, 4 quarterback pressures, 2 passes defensed, one interception and one forced fumble. As a junior in 2001, he made 56 tackles, 8 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, one fumble recovery and 8 passes defensed that tied the school's linebacker record. As a senior in 2002, he posted 71 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 6 quarterback pressures, one pass defensed and one forced fumble.
Professional career
Pre-draft
St. Louis Rams
Shanle was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the seventh round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He made his NFL debut against the New York Giants on September 7. As a rookie, he played on special teams and had 4 tackles, after battling a hamstring injury for most of the season. He was waived on December 10, to make room for guardScott Tercero who was promoted from the practice squad. In 2015, he was named one of the best 50 draft picks in the St. Louis Rams history by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch newspaper.
Dallas Cowboys
On December 11, 2003, he was claimed off waivers by the Dallas Cowboys. He was declared inactive for the last 3 games and the playoffs. In 2004, he ranked fourth on the Cowboys roster with 15 special teams tackles. He became the starter at strongside linebacker in the team's new 3–4 defense for the final three games, in place of an injured Al Singleton, registering 26 tackles which led the team over that span. In 2005, he served as the Cowboys' nickel middle linebacker. After injuries forced Dat Nguyen into retirement, Shanle moved into the starting lineup at weakside linebacker. He battled injury setbacks in the season's final games, tying for seventh on the team with 50 tackles and tied for eleventh with 8 special teams tackles. On April 28, 2006, he was re-signed to a one-year contract. On August 23, he was traded to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for a seventh round pick.
New Orleans Saints
In 2006, he was acquired to improve the linebacker corps, reuniting with head coachSean Payton, who was the offensive coordinator with the Cowboys. He became a starter at weakside linebacker, leading the team with 77 solo tackles, he was second with 117 total tackles, while registering four sacks, a forced fumble and one pass defensed and helped lead the Saints to the NFC Championship Game vs Chicago. On February 9, 2007, he signed a four-year extension contract. He started 14 games, recording 96 tackles, a pass defensed, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and one tackle for a loss. In 2008, he was named the Saints Defensive MVP, after finishing with 145 tackles, 79 solo tackles, 8 passes defensed, 2 sacks and one forced fumble. In 2009, he was a starting weakside linebacker on the Saints' Super Bowl championship team. He started 14 games, missing the last two regular season contests with a concussion. He recorded 106 tackles, 2 interceptions, 4 pass defensed and 2 fumble recoveries. He was the team's leading tackler during their playoff run that included wins over opposing quarterbacks Kurt Warner, Brett Favre and Peyton Manning in Super Bowl XLIV. In 2010, he started 14 games at weakside linebacker, missing contests with a hamstring injury against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cleveland Browns. He posted 98 tackles, 3 passes defensed, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one special teams tackle. On July 29, 2011, he signed a two-year contract with the Saints after the Kansas City Chiefs offered a free agent contract. He appeared in 16 games with 14 starts from both the strongside and weakside positions, collecting 84 tackles, one sack, one interception, 5 passes defensed, one forced fumble and 3 special teams tackles. Shanle finished his 7 year Saints career after playing in a total of 97 games with 94 starts and 673 total tackles. Since Payton took over as the Saints head coach in 2006, no other linebacker has more tackles than Shanle, and he ranks second defensively in total tackles behind strong safetyRoman Harper.
