NFL Drafts First One-handed Player

Shaquem Griffin has become the first one-handed player to be drafted by an NFL team after being selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round.

The linebacker had his left hand amputated when he was four, having been born with a condition that prevented the fingers from fully developing.

The 22-year-old joins his twin brother Shaquill, a cornerback, in Seattle.

Shaquem Griffin was in attendance in Dallas to hear his name called at the 2018 NFL Draft. He starred at college level, winning his conference’s defensive player of the year award in 2016 and playing in an unbeaten University of Central Florida team last season.

He gained attention at the NFL Combine in March when he ran the quickest 40-yard dash for a linebacker since 2003.

Griffin also bench-pressed 225lb 20 times, three more than his identical twin managed, having attached a prosthetic hand onto the bar. Current NFL defensive stars JJ Watt and Von Miller were among those to react in awe on social media.

He said before the draft: “I want to show the entire world, no matter [if you have] one hand, two hands, if you’re a ball player, you just play ball.”

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