Shaquill Griffin: Seattle Seahawks underestimated New York Giants before upset loss
RENTON, Wash. -- The Seattle Seahawks were double-digit favorites last week against the New York Giants, who came to Lumen Field with a 4-7 record, no Saquon Barkley and backup Colt McCoy at quarterback.
So how did the Seahawks lose 17-12 in one of the biggest upsets of the NFL season?
If you ask Pro Bowl cornerback Shaquill Griffin, it was in part because they underestimated the Giants.
Griffin made that point Thursday when asked if the Seahawks' energy level is any different this week coming off the loss as they prepare for the winless New York Jets.
"Everybody is locking back in," Griffin said. "We've always been practicing hard. I just feel like we let that game kind of get the best of us, and we came in taking a team lightly. That's just being totally honest. In this league, you can lose to anybody. It don't matter who it is. It don't matter if they lost every single game. You can lose to anybody in this league if you don't play right. And I feel like we took that game lightly, and I feel like the focus point now is just refocusing, treating every team the same, treating it like a championship game like we continue to preach about."
McCoy hadn't won a game as a starter since 2014, and the Seahawks (8-4) were 5-0 at home before Sunday. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, their loss matched the largest upset of the season in terms of point spread; Seattle closed as a 10.5-point favorite, according to Caesars Sportsbook by William Hill.
Afterward, coach Pete Carroll shot down the idea that anything was amiss with his team's energy level or focus. Asked the same question, strong safety Jamal Adams wondered aloud if that was an issue.
Griffin made four references to the Seahawks taking the Giants "lightly."
"We came in that Monday, and we spoke about the game and mistakes that we made and tried to correct it," Griffin said. "But understand that that team was not supposed to beat us. Let's just be totally honest. They was not supposed to win that game, and we had to live with that. That's a taste in our mouths that no one never wants. ...
"We don't want to feel like this anymore. So that's why it was so great for us to go ahead and attack that head-on, attack the elephant that's in the room and understand that we took this team lightly, a team that was ready to play, that's got a lot on the line, that's still got a chance to be in the playoffs."
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