Shaquill "Shaq" Griffin (born July 20, 1995) is an American football cornerback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He is the twin brother of former linebacker Shaquem Griffin, and both brothers played college football at UCF. Griffin was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
Early life
Shaquill Griffin was born to Tangie and Terry Griffin on July 20, 1995, in St. Petersburg Florida, less than two minutes before Shaquem. Shaquill and Shaquem competed together in track, baseball, and football.
High school career
Griffin attended Lakewood High School in St. Petersburg, Florida. He played high school football for the Spartans. He chose to attend UCF after high school.
College career
Griffin played for the University of Central Florida (UCF) Knights from 2013 to 2016, rejecting offers from other teams including the Miami Hurricanes, his dream team, to play with his twin brother Shaquem. He left UCF one season before Shaquem, as Shaquem redshirted his freshman year while Shaquill saw playing time.
As a freshman, Shaquill recorded six total tackles and one pass defensed in four games. As a sophomore, Shaquill recorded 15 total tackles and an interception in six games. As a junior, he recorded 43 total tackles, one interception returned for a touchdown (against Temple), and 11 passes defensed in 11 games. As a senior, he recorded 49 total tackles, four interceptions (one against Tulane returned for a touchdown), 15 passes defensed, and one fumble recovery.
College statistics
Professional career
Griffin accepted his invitation to the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. On January 24, 2017, he appeared in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl for Jim Zorn's American team and recorded three combined tackles as they lost 27–7 to the National team. He was one of 35 collegiate cornerbacks to be invited to the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Indiana. Griffin was a top performer among his position group, finishing second in the broad jump, third in the vertical jump, and ran the fourth-fastest 40-yard dash among all defensive backs. On March 22, 2017, Griffin attended Central Florida's pro day, but opted to stand on his combine numbers and only performed positional drills for team representatives and scouts from 20 NFL teams and three CFL teams. Throughout the draft process, Griffin had private workouts and visits with multiple teams, including the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tennessee Titans, Detroit Lions, Indianapolis Colts, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, Dallas Cowboys, and Philadelphia Eagles. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Griffin was projected to be a third- or fourth-round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked the 17th-best cornerback prospect in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com.
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks selected Griffin in the third round (90th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft. He was the 13th cornerback selected in 2017.
2017
On June 15, 2017, the Seattle Seahawks signed Griffin to a four-year, $3.25 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $758,620. Griffin joined the defensive unit nicknamed the Legion of Boom for its final season.
Throughout training camp, Griffin competed against Jeremy Lane, DeShawn Shead, and Neiko Thorpe for the starting cornerback job. Head coach Pete Carroll named Griffin the fourth cornerback on the depth chart behind Richard Sherman, Jeremy Lane, and Neiko Thorpe.
He made his professional regular season debut in the Seattle Seahawks' season-opener at the Green Bay Packers and made a season-high ten combined tackles and deflected one pass during their 17–9 loss. Griffin played the majority of the game after Jeremy Lane was ejected in the first quarter after allegedly throwing a punch at Packers wide receiver Davante Adams. On October 8, 2017, Griffin made his first career start after Jeremy Lane was inactive after suffering a groin injury during their Week 4 victory over the Indianapolis Colts. He finished the Seahawks' 16–10 win against the Los Angeles Rams with six solo tackles and one pass deflection. The following week, Griffin earned his second consecutive start with Lane still inactive and recorded three solo tackles and a season-high three pass deflections in Seattle's 24–7 victory at the New York Giants. After Lane returned from injury, head coach Pete Carroll stated Griffin would remain the starting cornerback entering Week 8.