I don’t pretend to know much about American football. Unlike my brother, I’m not a fan. Even with all the talk of this weekend’s much-anticipated NFL Draft, I’m still not sure how exactly the event works.
However, talk of the NFL Draft reminded me of something an American colleague recently told me. In 2018, Shaquem Griffin made history by becoming the first one-handed player to be drafted by an NFL team. Before this week, I didn’t know anything else about Shaquem Griffin, but I do now, and I’d love for you to follow me down the rabbit hole.
Shaquem Griffin is a former professional American football player. He was born with amniotic band syndrome, a rare condition affecting approximately 5 in 10,000 births. The condition meant that the fingers on his left hand were underdeveloped and mostly made of tissue.
They were also excruciatingly painful. When Shaquem was four years old, his mother awoke to him screaming. She found him in the kitchen, shrieking in pain and wielding a knife and preparing to cut off his hand. The next day, his parents scheduled an appointment to have it surgically removed.
At that age, Shaquem already loved football. After his surgery when he was supposed to be healing, he sneaked outside to play football with his twin brother Shaquill (much to the dismay of his mother who found out because his bandage was dirty).
Shaquem and Shaquill have a special bond. Growing up, they considered themselves a package deal. As children, they made a pact that they would make it to the NFL and play on the same team together.
As they grew older, they pursued this dream, deciding that they just needed a few teams to take a chance on them. They played on their high school football team. Their family supported their ambition, and, when their father saw how serious and passionate the boys were, he built custom equipment for Shaquem so that he could lift weights and workout alongside his brother.
Both Shaquem and Shaquill had great high school careers. Unfortunately, when the college offers and football scholarships started rolling in, they were only for Shaquill. Regardless of his performance, no coach wanted to take a chance on a one-handed player.
Shaquill turned down several offers from Division I teams (the most competitive level of college football) because they had overlooked his brother. The University of Central Florida, a Division I school, was the only school to offer them both a scholarship. The twins accepted.
Soon after arriving at UCF, it became apparent that Head Coach George O’Leary had only offered Shaquem a spot because he wanted Shaquill. He bullied and belittled Shaquem, demoting him to the practice squad and refusing to give him any playing time. Without playing time, Shaquem wouldn’t get scouted by the NFL.
Worse, O’Leary attempted to separate the twins, telling Shaquill that his brother was holding him back. In their third year, O’Leary threatened to revoke Shaquem’s scholarship if he came on campus. Shaquill retaliated, standing by his brother’s abilities and telling O’Leary that he would leave UCF to play elsewhere.
Shaquill graduated in 2016 and was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks. Shaqueem stayed at UCF for one more year.
Shaquem realised that many coaches viewed his disability as a vulnerability. “I knew I had to do more to be seen. If I catch a ball, then I just catch a ball. If I drop a ball, it’s because I got one hand”, he once said.
Because of a string of losses, UCF hired a new head coach. Unlike previous coaches, Coach Scott Frost saw Shaquem’s abilities rather than his disability. He made him a starting player.
With the opportunity, Shaquem led UCF to an undefeated season and a national championship win. The American Athletic Conference named him the Defensive Player of the Year.
The following year, he received an invitation to the NFL Combine, an annual scouting event where college players perform in front of NFL representatives. With a prosthetic limb, he bench pressed 225 pounds for 20 reps—three more than his brother had—and ran the 40-yard dash in 4.38 seconds, the fastest time ever recorded for a linebacker.
In April 2018, he was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks, fulfilling the brothers’ lifelong goal.
Shaquem played in the NFL for four seasons before retiring and joining NFL Legends, an organisation that mentors other players.
If you Google Shaquem Griffin—which I have clearly done a lot recently—the search results largely focused on his disability.N
But his story isn’t one of disability: it’s a story of ability.
In the US, more than 1 million boys play high school football each year. Only around three percent of high school players advance to play at the Division I level, and fewer than two percent of those college players get drafted into the NFL. That means that only about .08 percent of high school players—8 out of every 10,000– get drafted into the NFL.
Of those drafted, only 30 percent ever see playing time. I did some back-of-the-envelope maths and discovered that only .024 percent of high school football players will ever play in an NFL game.
And Shaquem Griffin was one of them. How did he end up there?
Beside his natural talent, he had a support system that nurtured his abilities. His family never saw him as limited. They never placed limits on what he could do, and they actually pushed him harder because they believed in his ability. They didn’t let him make excuses. When Shaquem thought the custom equipment was too challenging, his father used it one-handed, saying if he could do it, then Shaquem could.
Shaquem had a support system, accessible equipment, and self-belief.
Today, he tries to bring those same attributes into the lives of others. He works as a motivational speaker and often speaks with children with disabilities. He’s also become an ambassador and advisor for smartARM, a technology company that aims to empower human autonomy with an AI-powered bionic arm hand that adapts grips and responds naturally to the environment.
Shaquem previously turned down spokesperson offers from several companies producing expensive prosthetics because the high costs—upwards of 30,000 euro—create barriers for those in need. Growing up, his family couldn’t afford one. However, smartARM offers supportive payment plans, aiming to be a leader in prosthetic accessibility,
Accessibility unlocks ability. Support systems amplify strength. Determination drives success.
With the combination, there’s no such thing as disability—only ability waiting to be recognised.
Image attribution: Photo by All-Pro Reels is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0