Seattle Seahawks: Shaquem Griffin a Kam Chancellor replacement?

Kam Chancellor hasn’t been the pillar of health lately, but the Seattle Seahawks may have his replacement in rookie Shaquem Griffin. 

The days of the Legion of Boom are long gone for the Seattle Seahawks. Only safeties Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor remain. However, it appears that even he may be on his last legs.

According to Bleacher Report, Chancellor will play only if his body allows him to in 2018. Whether or not Chancellor takes the field this season remains to be seen. Should his body not allow him to, the Seahawks could look to an unlikely party, rookie linebacker Shaquem Griffin, as his replacement. 

Griffin was drafted out of UCF by the Seahawks in the fifth round. His limitations have been wildly populated. There are concerns about his ability to disengage from blockers and about his surety as a tackler.

Nevertheless, he’s a specimen who stands at 6-2, 227 pounds with blazing speed at his size. Griffin has a high football IQ and does an excellent job making plays on the ball. He can blitz off the edge and delivers power when he hits. Currently, Griffin is slated to play as an outside.

Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll addressed his progress during rookie minicamp, via the Seattle Times:

"“He looked very comfortable, very natural,’’ Carroll said Sunday. “He has a sense already for scheme and terminology. The position is the right spot for him, it looks like. We can be aggressive and use his speed. He’s already shown some sense in the passing game and he had a couple really good plays adjusting to zone coverage and man coverage and things we’ve already seen. So those were good things to take away. And we can’t really get a feel at all for special teams but we know that that’s going to be a factor so we’re excited about that.”"

For Seattle, the WILL linebacker is often accompanied by Chancellor, who plays over the outside shoulder of the tackle. Because of Griffin’s skill set, he is ideally suited to play strong safety in Seattle’s defense. In fact, when the Seahawks operate out of the 4-2-5, it’ll give Griffin a chance to play in space.

This will give him an opportunity to play to his strengths. Carroll eluded to Griffin’s ability to cover, a skill he showed when asked to do so at the NFL Combine. Given his natural athletic ability and IQ, there’s no reason to believe he can’t play the strong safety position in Seattle’s defense.

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Griffin will likely continue to learn the nuances of the linebacker position as a potential replacement for K.J Wright for now. However, there’s a chance that the rookie could see some time at strong safety, depending on Chancellor’s help and the viability of other options.