Twenty reps on the 225-pound bench press sounds like an accomplishment in itself. Doing so with a prosthetic hand makes it even more impressive.
University of Central Florida linebacker Shaquem Griffin made it look easy at the NFL scouting combine Saturday, notching a personal best and tying him for 16th among linebackers, according to NFL.com.
"Just starting that off, I just felt the energy from everybody," said Griffin, a 6-1, 227-pound linebacker, via NFL.com. "I mean, my adrenaline was going through the roof and I didn't feel like I needed to stop. So as soon as I heard I was at 16, I was like, 'Oh, yeah, I'm going for 20.' I was like, 'I'm going to change my fitness regimen, I've got to grind this out right here.' It felt amazing to reach that goal."
Griffin, who lost his left hand at 4 because of amniotic band syndrome, put up three more reps than his twin brother, Seattle Seahawks cornerback Shaquill Griffin, did last year.
Shaquem Griffin was projected before the combine to be at best a mid-round pick.
"I mean, it's amazing," Shaquem said. "Obviously a lot of people didn't feel like I was going to do the bench press and for me to be able to put a prosthetic on -- I remember when I first started using the prosthetic, I had just the bar and I was shaking all over the place when I first got to UCF and being able to put up numbers like that, with good competition with everybody, it's amazing because it just goes to show how much hard work I put in to get this level."
Griffin recorded 166 total tackles and 18.5 sacks over his last two seasons at Central Florida.
