Article of footwear including a heel stabilizing element

An article of footwear comprising:

• a heel region including a posterior end of the article of footwear, a mid-foot region, and a forefoot region including an anterior end of the article of footwear;
• a lateral side, and a medial side opposite the lateral side;
• an upper;
• a sole structure, the sole structure coupled to the upper, and wherein the sole structure further comprises;
• a midsole extending from the posterior end to the anterior end;
• a shell, wherein the shell includes a plurality of circumferentially-spaced apart protrusions each extending away from the upper toward a ground-surface when the article of footwear is in an upright configuration, wherein each of the plurality of protrusions is coupled to the midsole;
• and
• a heel counter disposed adjacent to the midsole in the heel region, wherein the heel counter includes one or more protrusions, each protrusion of the heel counter being disposed within the shell.