For Seahawks Shaquem Griffin to be good he needs to change positions
By Lee Vowell
Seahawks linebacker Shaquem Griffin didn’t have the best of rookie seasons. But he could still help Seattle if he changes positions.
Let’s be honest, 12s. When the Seahawks took Shaquem Griffin in the 2017 NFL Draft, we felt happy. Not only did Seattle do a good thing in taking a chance on a player with physical attributes different than anyone else in the league, they also were choosing a current Seahawk players’ brother. We want Shaquem to be great and we wanted him to be great immediately.
To be fair to Griffin, asking any NFL rookie to be very good straight away is not a proper expectation. A first-year player in the NFL has to acclimate to the speed of the game itself and then find the niche where they can excel. Griffin never really had this chance.
Sure, Seattle started him in week one after he had an incredible preseason. K.J. Wright was injured and not going to be available week one so Griffin had the speed to help. But preseason football and regular season football are two different things. Opposing teams didn’t only take advantage of the fact that Griffin has just one hand. What opposing teams did was figure out a way where veteran tight ends would use their know-how to get receptions against Griffin and use their size to get yards.
In Shaquem Griffin's final year at UCF, he earned an overall grade of 81.0 when lined up as an edge defender and a grade of 66.3 when lined up as a linebacker.
— PFF SEA Seahawks (@PFF_Seahawks) May 28, 2019
In his rookie season with the #Seahawks, Griffin had only two snaps as an edge defender out of 50 total snaps.
But Griffin can still be a good player. He just needs to be used in a different way. In college, he was versatile and did many things well. The NFL is full of players who know how to do one or two things well. Griffin still is a freak with his speed and the Seahawks need to find a way to use that.
Seattle also needs help at edge rusher. Actually, pass rushing specialist in today’s NFL aren’t simply about size, strength and speed. It could just be about speed. Having Griffin with only two snaps as an edge defender last year in Seattle is simply not using Griffin’s talents well.
Early guess at Seahawks skill position depth. dark. Next
Griffin has the speed to disrupt. Even with just one hand he would not be easily blocked once he learns how to beat NFL tackles. His speed is great enough to do that alone. The Seahawks need to work Griffin into the defense end mix along with recent signee Ziggy Ansah and recent draftee L.J. Collier. Give Griffin a chance at edge rusher instead of linebacker and I bet he produces.