Alexander Shun | @alexpshun
Digital Content Manager | KFAN.com
Minnesota Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen was thrilled to get the nod for his second-consecutive Pro Bowl appearance this year saying that it was an honor and "...it's nice to know you are respected around the NFL." After Sunday's Pro Bowl performance, the respect level for Griffen might have skyrocketed.
Griffen was a defensive force on Sunday, racking eight total tackles including three huge sacks. The Vikings defensive end would likely have earned Pro Bowl MVP honors had the NFC team come back and won the game but a Kirk Cousins pass was intercepted, ending the NFC's comeback attempt.
"I really wanted the MVP. I really wanted to win the game, but it didn't happen," Griffen told reporters in Orlando after the NFC's 20-13 defeat. "I'm just blessed to be out here with some of the best players in the league and compete. It's all about competing and playing the next down, and that's what I did."
Griffen earned the Pro Bowl nod after a stellar season in which the seventh-year pro accumulated 48 total tackles including eight sacks, one pass defensed and two forced fumbles.
You can check out some of the top moments of Griffen's Pro Bowl performance in the tweets below, courtesy of the Vikings official Twitter account.