It was always going to be a weird offseason for the Minnesota Vikings. You could see it coming way back in January as the Vikings walked off the field in Santa Barbara after the San Francisco 49ers eliminated them from the playoffs. If you looked hard enough, you could see it coming two summers ago as GM Rick Spielman made a series of moves to keep the Vikings’ core intact. Not even the savviest GMing or team-friendly deals can protect any team from the truth. The cap comes for everyone and it’s impossible to keep everybody.
In the span of a few days, Minnesota has bid farewell to a number of players who have been franchise icons over the past decade. Despite maintaining a still very talented roster, and expectations to compete for a third NFC North crown under Mike Zimmer, it’s difficult to witness the departure of a stable of players who helped the Vikings win a lot of games on the field, and who grew so much as individuals off of it.
Perhaps no Vikings player of this era has grown more or been more endearing to fans than Everson Griffen, who announced the end to his 10-year run in purple and gold in an Instagram post on Friday afternoon.
Prior to Griffen’s announcement, Xavier Rhodes and Linval Joseph had their contracts terminated and set the mass exodus in motion. Before the dust had settled on the departure of those two defensive stalwarts, the fireworks surrounding the Stefon Diggs trade lit up the sky from Minneapolis to Buffalo. Trae Waynes left for Cincinnati and a small fortune the Vikings had no chance of matching (and shouldn’t have even if they could). Between those four starters, that’s 336 games worth of plays, wins, and memories on their way out of Minnesota.
Rhodes came to Minnesota as a first-round pick in 2013. Fans saw him evolve from a talented, but erratic, young player and turn into one of the best cornerbacks in football for multiple seasons. Joseph came in with pedigree, a Super Bowl ring and quickly became a run-stuffing fan favorite affectionately known as “Linval Hungry.”
Waynes’s first career interception came against Aaron Rodgers and sealed an iconic victory against the Packers in the first game ever at U.S. Bank Stadium. Diggs grew into one of the best route runners in the league, made up one half of the most lethal receiving duo this franchise has had since Cris Carter and Randy Moss, and played a major role in one of the greatest plays in the history of the game.
Yes, the moves all make sense, financially and logically, but Vikings fans shouldn’t take the careers these players have had with the club for granted. Especially not Everson Griffen’s.
Griffen was drafted by Rick Spielman with the 100th overall pick of the 2010 NFL Draft. Of all the players on the 2019 Vikings, Marcus Sherels was Griffen’s only remaining teammate from his rookie season. He was always seen as an unbelievable athlete, but words like “underachiever” and “inconsistent motor” poisoned his draft stock and he fell to the third day.
The Vikings brought him along slowly. He started off as mostly a spot pass rusher, played a lot of special teams, and made one start at defensive end. Even in limited action, his freakish athleticism was on full display. He registered 17.5 sacks over three seasons in his “off the bench” role as a pass rusher, and provided one of the most athletic pick-sixes I’ve ever seen by a defensive lineman against the Rams and future Viking teammate Sam Bradford in 2012.
Griffen’s career took off with the arrival of Zimmer in 2014. He hit the double-digit sack milestone in his first season playing under his new coach. The next season, he played an essential role in the Vikings claiming their first division title since 2009 and was named to his first of four Pro Bowls.
It’s difficult to cement a lasting legacy as a defensive lineman for the Minnesota Vikings. Historically, it’s been the franchise’s strongest position group. There are six names ahead of Griffen on the franchise’s all-time sacks list: Carl Eller, Jim Marshall, John Randle, Alan Page, Chris Doleman, and Jared Allen. All of those names but Marshall and Allen are in the Hall of Fame (Allen is entering his first year of eligibility and has a shot, and I’m already on record of how I feel about the hall snubbing Jim Marshall for all these years).
Yet Griffen should be remembered as an all-time Vikings defensive lineman for more than just his talent. He threw himself into every play of every game with an energetic abandon. If a pile of explosives could come together and manifest as one player it would look an awful lot like No. 97.
It’s almost as if he wasn’t a real person, but was put together in a video game’s Create-a-Player portal with cheat codes unlocked: Pass rush-99, Energy-99, add in Bad Boy Pistons era Dennis Rodman antics, plus Gary Payton trash talking, times Josh Donaldson’s fire, top it off with John Randle style eye black and you get one of the team’s best players of the 2010s.
Despite his on-field prowess, Griffen was always deeply human. His flaws were never hidden. He was called offsides a lot. Anything that ever happened off the field he was open and honest about and never made excuses. He was unapologetically himself at all times. Whether performing his signature ‘Sack Daddy’ celebration after taking down a quarterback, speaking to the media after games, or out in the community, his bright and vibrant spirit was as undeniable as his devastating spin move.
Most importantly and most courageously, he spoke up about his struggle with his own mental health issues. He not only asked for help, he pursued it and set an example for his fellow players by taking time away from the game to do so.
He came to Minnesota a 22-year-old kid with more questions surrounding his character than the number of players drafted before him in 2010. He leaves as a 32-year-old man, a husband, a father, an advocate, an all-time Vikings character with an all-time amount of character.
Decade-long careers in the NFL are rare. A full decade with one team is almost impossible. He should be someone revered by Vikings fans for ages, partly for the player he was, and totally for the man he became.