By: Lindsey Young
Shaq Griffin clearly remembers the day his mom, dad and twin brother Shaquem dropped him off at the airport.
Shaq had declared for the 2017 NFL Draft and was headed to Texas from his home state of Florida, to train for the NFL Scouting Combine.
The excitement was undeniable. But as he stepped out of his family's car, suitcase in tow, Shaq found himself crying.
For the first time in his two decades of life, he'd be away from his home and his family – most notably Shaquem, who had opted to stay another year at UCF.
"I didn't know what to expect," Shaq recalled. "I was scared, nervous."
The Griffin twins had done everything together for as long as either could remember. From playing video games and early trips to the mall – where their mother Tangie would purchase matching clothing for the boys – to competing in backyard football, Shaq and Shaquem were always in unison.
When Shaquem had his left hand amputated at 4 years old due to amniotic band syndrome, Shaq made sure he never was left out and still learned to play all the sports.
"We were kind of a package deal – in the younger days all the way up to football getting pretty serious," Shaq said. "Same high school, same college, same goal of getting to the league. That was always the plan. That probably started when we were 12, 13 years old."
It's a path similar to that of Vikings running back Aaron Jones and his twin brother, Alvin, Jr., though the Jones family, which includes two other brothers, moved often.
With a mother and father who both served in the U.S. Army, Aaron valued even more a built-in best friend.
"There's nothing I didn't like about being a twin," Aaron said. "If you have to pick up and restart in athletics or school or whatever, I'm not worried about, 'Ah, I gotta go make friends.' I've got my best friend right there with me at all times, going through it with me.
"It's honestly a blessing," he added. "I tell people, 'I don't know what I would do if I didn't have a twin. Like, God knew I needed to have a twin or somebody right there with me at all times. And Shaq said the same thing. It's crazy."
Having two players on an NFL roster who have a twin is unique but not unheard of. Shaq and Shaquem even played together on the same team for three seasons.
But Aaron and Shaq aren't the only Vikings who have twin siblings; in fact, there are two more among Minnesota's rookie free agents.
Linebacker Gabriel Murphy has a twin brother, Grayson, and offensive lineman Spencer Rolland has a twin sister, Brynne.
"That's pretty amazing. It's crazy," Shaq laughed when hearing the news. "I feel like I've always been on a team with one other [twin or] set of twins, but this is definitely a personal best for me."
Bait and switch
Of the four twins in the Vikings locker room, two are identical (Shaq/Shaquem and Gabriel/Grayson), while the other two are fraternal – though that never stopped Vurgess Jones from dressing her sons in matching outfits.
"I think the '90s clothes were dope. We came up in a pretty cool time – from the shoes, shorts, the way people wore their socks – everything," Aaron said. "I look back and I'm like, 'Man, we've got some style.' I'll mess with my mom, like, 'Mom, you were dressing us? You sure? OK, I'll give you some kudos – you can dress.' "
Though some occasionally do confuse Aaron and Alvin, the similarities of course are much more striking between the identical sets of twins – and naturally, we had to ask how many times they duped family, friends or classmates.
Gabriel noted that because neither he nor Grayson has a birthmark or distinguishing physical trait, their mother wrote their names on diapers when the boys were infants.
"That was the only way she could tell us apart when we first came home from the hospital," Gabriel laughed. "And then Mom would dress us in the same types of clothes, so it was hard for everybody when we went out. We used to play games, like switch up and things like that."
Gabriel recounted one time during high school when he and Grayson swapped jackets in between periods and attempted to attend the other's class and study hall, respectively.
"The teacher didn't know, but the students in class could tell, so they kind of gave it away," he quipped. "We had a fun time, though."
The Griffin twins executed a similar switcheroo – and even more successfully.
Shaq noted he was stronger in math and Shaquem shined in English classes, so in ninth grade the brothers took each other's class. Shaq kept his left hand in a sweatshirt or jacket pocket as they attempted to raise grades. The ruse worked for a few days before they were exposed.
"My brother talked too much," Shaq said, shaking his head. "He was the class clown, so he was talking so much to the point where he got sent to the office, and then the real names came out and I got pulled out of his class.
"I actually did his work," Shaq added incredulously. "He went in my class and didn't do nothing. He just got us in trouble. So, yeah. We stopped doing that."
That is, until the early winter of 2018. In the extra season he'd stayed at UCF, Shaquem helped the Golden Knights go undefeated in the regular season.
The team was recognized for its successes twice – in a parade at nearby Disney World, which Shaquem attended, and also in a downtown Orlando block party. When Shaq heard his brother would be unavailable for the latter event, he stepped in … literally.
"I was Shaquem Griffin, MVP," Shaq laughed. "He went to go combine train. It was offseason for me, my first year, and I'm like, 'You know what? I'll be in Orlando and be Shaquem Griffin.' So we had a big parade, I walked out and it was like, 'That's Shaquem Griffin.' Got all the [accolades], the trophy. It still works."
It's a twin thing
Lookalikes or not, all four twins on Minnesota's roster agree that when it comes to their sibling, there's a deep and special connection.
"Brynne and I were never in the same classes because our parents kind of wanted us to become a little bit independent, not having to rely on each other. But we were still super-duper close," explained Spencer, a native of Burnsville, Minnesota. "I'd come home and we had this thing, we called it 'Twinny Powers' when we'd just vibe with each other really well.
"It was super crazy," Spencer laughed. "That's what our parents would call it when we would get in that phase and mode – 'Twinny Powers.' That was always fun."
The rookie recalled one such example when he and Brynne were in separate second-grade classrooms but going through the same curriculum. Their respective teachers led individual units on Antarctica and asked the students to draw a picture demonstrating what they'd learned.
Brynne and Spencer drew the exact same picture.
"We had this iceberg with a hole in the middle, with a penguin, and then there was a whale jumping off to the side," Spencer said. "We finish each other's sentences and stuff, but I think that moment was probably the biggest [example of 'Twinny Powers']. The teachers sat down with each other and were like, 'This is crazy.' That was definitely the subject at parent-teacher conferences that year."
Gabriel and Grayson spend so much time with one another, Gabriel said they're bound to know what each other is thinking a good portion of the time. He noticed another level of connection, though, when he broke his leg as a sophomore in high school and Grayson felt a deep ache in the same spot on his own leg.
"If one of us is in serious pain, the other knows. Or if he's having a bad day, I can tell he's having a bad day without him telling me," Gabriel said.
Shaq recounted instances in which he and Shaquem would exit their separate bedrooms and be listening to the same song, or they'd individually select the same TV station without knowing what the other had chosen.
Now, they even have children who are coincidentally extremely close in age.
"My baby girl turned 1, and his baby boy turned 1 two weeks later," said Shaq, who added both families are expecting again, with due dates just one day apart. "We didn't plan any of that."
Aaron most recently recognized an instance of "twin telepathy" after signing with the Vikings in March.
"It's a real thing – you don't have to be identical to experience that," he noted.
Aaron was thrilled for a fresh start in Minnesota but still experienced some anxiety about transitioning to a new city after spending seven seasons in Green Bay.
"When I'm new to places, I don't like being alone; I didn't want to come by myself," he said. "Without me saying anything to my brother, I was talking to Mom, and she told me, 'Your brother will be down there with you tomorrow.'
"I needed him. Sure enough, he knew it," Aaron added. "Is it telepathy, or does that person just know you inside and out? I feel like it's a little bit of both."
Built-in support system
Just like Shaq departed college a year ahead of Shaquem, Aaron declared for the 2017 NFL Draft a year ahead of Alvin.
Like Shaq, Aaron had a difficult time parting ways with Alvin for that season.
He wrestled with the decision to start his NFL journey or stay at Texas-El Paso with his brother, waiting until the final possible day to make his choice.
"I was driving home, and I called Alvin like, 'Hey, I'm really struggling. I don't know what to do. Like, I think I'm good enough to be at the next level, but I don't want to leave you,' " Aaron remembered. "He told me, 'This has been our dream since we were little kids. You're definitely good enough to be there – so go chase your dreams, and I'll be there the next year.'
"That kind of broke my heart, because then I knew I'd be leaving my brother shortly after that," Aaron continued. "But it also speaks volumes of him not being selfish, like, 'Hey, stay with me.' He said, 'You go. We know you're good enough, so you go and put in the work and prove yourself.' And it's worked out."
A year after Shaq and Aaron were drafted in the third and fifth round by the Seahawks and Packers, respectively, Shaquem and Alvin got their opportunity.
Alvin signed as an undrafted free agent with Baltimore, where he spent the 2018 and 2019 offseason before being waived with an injury. He later went on to play for the Canadian Football League's Saskatchewan Roughriders from 2021-22.
Shaquem spent four seasons in the NFL, the first three alongside his brother in Seattle.
"When it came to his first year, he didn't have to worry about anything," Shaq said with a smile. "He went to the same place in Texas where I trained for the combine, he went from there to the same agency that I signed with, and from there he got drafted by Seattle and ended up staying with me – I already had a place for him."
Gabriel and Grayson don't have the luxury of living together, but they enjoyed playing together at Bishop Lynch High School and then collegiately at North Texas (2019-21) and UCLA (2022-23). They trained together for the NFL Scouting Combine and waited anxiously throughout the 2024 NFL Draft, after which they each were signed as undrafted free agents – Gabriel by the Vikings and Grayson by the Dolphins.
Though it's been tough to be physically away from one another, the brothers have kept in close contact and compared notes as they start their NFL journeys.
"We're both doing what we love, so when we're each out on the practice field, it's almost like we can't tell we're away from each other," Gabriel said. "It's really when I go back to the hotel or go be by myself, that's when I'm like, 'Damn, I miss my brother.' "
Gabriel, Shaq, Aaron and Spencer all are forever grateful for their twins' – and entire families' – support throughout their football careers.
Spencer was especially thankful to join the team he and Brynne have rooted for together over the years.
"My family is all so supportive of me, and they have been throughout my career. Just to have that support network so close and easily accessible, it's been a blessing," Spencer said. "Not many other players in my position have that experience because they're moving cross-country. Brynne and my family are all very excited. We grew up Vikings fans, so to be in this situation is still a little bit surreal."
Bond like no other
It can be tough joining a new team, whether as rookies in Spencer and Gabriel's case or as free agents like Aaron and Shaq.
But one thing that's immediately helped unite the teammates is the common bond of being a twin.
"I think it's definitely a relatable situation," Spencer said. "Having other twins, and at my high school there were triplets I was close to, as well, so it was very similar. It's one of those things where you understand what twins are experiencing. Talking with Gabe, I asked him about his brother and their experience growing up."
Gabriel had familiarity with Aaron due to playing collegiately (though at different times) in the same conference but hadn't realized he had a twin until signing with the Vikings.
"But Grayson knew he had a twin, even though I didn't," Gabriel laughed. "So he told me, 'Hey, you know Aaron Jones has a twin!' The next day I came in and talked to Aaron about it, and we had that immediate connection and started swapping stories."
Aaron and Shaq go way back, having both been part of the 2017 draft class a year ahead of their brothers.
Coincidentally, their teams faced each other in their first regular-season game as NFL players. Jones was inactive that week and would make his debut the following game, but he and Griffin still were able to connect.
"My first year, first game of the season, I ended up playing against Aaron's team. … We've been close ever since," said Shaq, who racked up 10 tackles in that matchup. "And then since we've been here, we've been close.
"He actually doesn't know this, but he used to take a lot of pictures and stuff with my auntie. She's a huge Green Bay fan, and he went out of his way and sent her a video, shouted her out for her birthday," Shaq added. "Yeah, Aaron has a good place in my heart. He doesn't even know he did that, but my family loves him."
