The Seattle Seahawks just got an important piece of their defense back in camp. They still have to be concerned about how his absence will impact his effectiveness this season.
The first preseason game is upon us, 12s, so it's all hands on deck for the Seahawks. Well, not quite, as coach Mike Macdonald is holding the starters out of the contest. That makes perfect sense, as the starting roles are largely defined already. Well, most of them, anyway.
The offensive line isn't the only group that still has a few question marks, though. It's become increasingly clear that, at least for now, the starting safeties are set with Julian Love and Coby Bryant. Seattle's rookie phenom Nick Emmanwori may change that picture as the season progresses.
I think it's more likely he'll fill multiple roles for the Seahawks and give opposing offenses fits from all over the field. But it's a different story at cornerback.
The Seahawks need to know if Shaquill Griffin can contribute sooner, not later
It wasn't exactly the biggest free agent splash the Seahawks made this offseason. But it was still a solid move when John Schneider brought former Seattle cornerback Shaquill Griffin home. He was expected to immediately step in and compete with Josh Jobe as the third CB for Aden Durde's defense.
Entering his ninth year in the league, Griffin still has substantial skills. He's not Devon Witherpoon or even Riq Woolen at this point in his career, but he's likely better than Jobe.
The problem is, we have no idea if that's true yet. Griffin signed in late June, but missed the week and a half of training camp. If not for that, he may have even challenged Woolen for his spot. We do have two bits of good news. He was listed as out due to a personal matter, not an injury. And he came back to camp this Tuesday.
The bad news, well, there's a lot. He didn't practice, even though he was in camp. He has one day to participate before Seattle's first preseason game. And Mike Macdonald doesn't run a vanilla defense by any means. So Griffin has missed about ten days of learning all the nuances of a new defense of new schemes and sets.
Then again, the Seahawks aren't likely to show too much in that first game, either. So Griffin may get some time on the field Thursday anyway. Raiders coach Pete Carroll - and man, does that feel weird - is playing his starters. At least to, ya know. start. Hopefully, Griffin can step into whatever role he plays, and the absence doesn't impact his play over the long term.