Warning: I really got into this.
Shaquem Griffin will make the roster because he’s a very talented, very driven, and very hungry player. He plays with 10x the heart and soul of what you could say are the more entitled, more coddled players who think or believe they can just go through the motions or just cash in without putting in the 100% dedication you need to not only be great but to survive the league.
I.e. if you put Shaquem’s passion, mindset, dedication to his craft with or without his hand into the bodies of let’s say a Harvin, or Christine Michael those guys might have dominated rather than frustrated.
Shaquem’s intangibles are off the charts, that he just makes everyone around him just as passionate and as hungry as he is. In many ways he’s not much different than a young Russ or a young Baldwin... as guys who fought through thier critics and naysayers and adverserities to become top players at there craft and for the most part have always put the team first.
However, despite all that Shaquem Griffin could be great not because of his intangibles but because the dude can straight up ball... he was one of the most explosive and most disruptive players in college last season and possesses imo elite instincts in terms of playing through to the ball. Just great awareness and understanding and great speed and quickness to seal the deal. Close it out.
WLB is a great position for him because in Carroll’s system to my understanding it’s a position that is more read and react towards the ball carrier as well as one that reads offensive keys to defend zones. WLB typically don’t have to be the biggest or fastest but I’d say quick wits and smart instinctual football with awareness and understanding of the gap discipline as well as feeling what your teammates are doing around you is more important.
It’s likely why KJ Wright was a perfect fit for WLB despite being solid at SLB. Wright has great feel and understanding for the game... like great instincts and awareness that makes his football speed much greater than his athletic measurables. I kind of get it why his teammates nicknamed him Spider-Man... cuz he’s got that elite instinct, that Spider-sense.
It was also interesting to learn and maybe because over the last couple of years .net Xs and Os game has been lacking but at times the WLB is asked to play sort of a pseudo MLB which allows Wagner to either free lance or drop back in deep coverage to allow Kam Chancellor/SS to free lance. So that made sense to me as to why at times Wright often filled in for Wagner at MLB when Wags was banged up because at times the WLB to play MLB in certain looks. Why DJ Alexander who backed up Wright last year is transitioning to MLB or was until his injury. And why Shaquem vs the Colts at times looked like he was playing MLB because he was.
And that’s cool to know... Griffin is a WLB on the depth chart but his range, athleticism, instincts, pass-rush acumen, elite speed once he becomes more refined, more adept to what he needs to do to maximize his skillset to be more in tuned to an NFL standard he’d going to be a beast of a chess piece.
To finally ask your 2nd question as to where Griffin can play, pretty much anywhere but DT or a position that within the play-call that doesn’t ask to occupy a blocker but to finish the play, get to the ball. Whether it’s as an edge defender/ pass-rusher (rather than setter), standard OLB, pseudo MLB, money LBer aka pseudo Safety, and he should be able to much with like Irvin’s background able to become a pseudo slot CB able to run with WRs when and if opposing OCs deal a mismatch.
It kind of comes off that I believe Griffin is already going to be an HoF type talent, that’ll be up to him, but he definitely is the ultimate tweener, very capable of handling a multitude of duties if the Seahawks want him to. From what I get from Shaquem, he’s going to be the best whatever the team wants him to be. And he’s going to put in the work and time in maximizing his opportunities to help his team. If the Seahawks, just want him to focus on bejng the best WLB and Special Teamer he can be, then he’s going to do it. I don’t doubt that one bit. He’s going to take his lumps and what not and have his fair share of failures but at some point he’ll fight through everything he needs to, to be the player that he’s needs to be in whatever he is asked to do... mostly because of his love for this game. That’s crazy to me. It’s going to be exciting watching this dude play ball and it makes it so much sweeter that he gets to share it with his broham. And more importantly both brothers are going to be great leaders on this defense... sooner rather than later.