Cam Akers stuck around for a bit, but with Jones returning and Jordan Mason providing depth, the Vikings ultimately moved on. Akers then landed in Seattle, but his time there has already come to an end, and he’s departing alongside a former teammate.

Seahawks Waive Akers and Griffin

Akers signed with the Seattle Seahawks just before they faced the Vikings two weeks ago. He joined veteran cornerback Shaq Griffin, who reunited with Seattle this offseason after spending last year in Minnesota. Both players are now back on the market after the Seahawks waived them on Thursday.

Transactions:
— The #Broncos waived veteran TE Marcedes Lewis,
— The #Seahawks waived RB Cam Akers and CB Shaq Griffin.
— The #Giants were awarded WR Ryan Miller from the #Bucs on waivers.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 11, 2025

Griffin spent the season bouncing between the active roster and practice squad, ultimately appearing in two games and making one start. The 30-year-old recorded seven tackles for Seattle in what is now his ninth NFL season.

It’s unclear whether Griffin intends to continue playing, but he should be able to find a depth role for the stretch run if he chooses. He played all 17 games for the Vikings last season and intercepted two passes.

Akers, meanwhile, has suited up for Minnesota in each of the past three seasons. The Vikings acquired him from the Los Angeles Rams in 2023 and again from the Houston Texans in 2024. This year, he returned to Minnesota after being released by the New Orleans Saints.

Seattle kept Akers for two weeks, though he never appeared in a game. With the Vikings earlier this season, he played in three games and recorded five rushing attempts.

Neither player is a strong candidate to return to Minnesota in 2025. If the Vikings were prioritizing immediate wins, Griffin might make sense as cornerback depth. But at 5-8, the focus has shifted to simply getting through the season and building toward the future.

But Minnesota has had several other notable names start in the secondary since, including three-time All-Pro Patrick Peterson, he just never earned those honors during his two-year stint with the Vikings from 2021-22. Yet, that doesn’t mean his arrival didn’t make an impact on the younger players in the locker room who were enamored with the future Hall of Famer.

Josh Metellus was one of the players who Peterson left a strong impression on. The young safety was entering his second season in 2021 when Peterson arrived, with 154 games of starting experience. While Peterson is no longer with the Vikings, GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah did add another experienced vet to Brian Flores’ defense this offseason, and according to Metellus, he’s already making an impact.

Shaquill Griffin = Patrick Peterson with Minnesota Vikings?

Buried in Alec Lewis’ latest from The Athletic, the Vikings beat reporter detailed the feisty, competitive nature Griffin is bringing to Minnesota’s secondary. Griffin could reportedly be seen “jawing” with Justin Jefferson following an incompletion during 7-on-7 drills this past Thursday. The 28-year-old cornerback was enjoying every bit of the encounter, and as Lewis stated, his “confidence is unmistakable.”

This is exactly what the secondary needs more of, and Metellus recognizes it too.

“It almost gives me that same feeling as Patrick Peterson when he came into the building. He’s a guy who has seen a lot of football, and he’s giving us tidbits, especially the young guys in the corner room.”

Josh Metellus on Shaquill Griffin’s impact on Minnesota Vikings

Griffin may not have any All-Pro accolades, but he was named to a Pro Bowl team in 2019. Yet, he also brings 89 games (79 starts) of experience to a young Vikings secondary that has yet to define its pecking order behind Byron Murphy.

And while the Vikings were getting Peterson at the age of 31, Griffin is in his athletic prime, at the age of 28. The only question is whether he can return to the borderline elite form that he displayed during his Seahawks career.

With Flores barking out play calls and putting players in the right position, having Griffin establish himself as an above-average corner could be crucial in improving the team’s 24th-ranked passing defense from a season ago.

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