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Final 53-man rosters are never as final as they seem, as the Vikings have already made several changes to theirs in the last 24 hours. One of the more surprising moves on Tuesday’s deadline was the releasing of long-time Vikings pass rusher Everson Griffen.
The former fan favorite in Minnesota didn’t stay off the team for long. In a move that was expected to take place, Griffen was re-signed by the Vikings on Wednesday afternoon.
It was a weird 24 hours as the Vikings juggled around pieces of the roster, but Griffen ended up back where he spent the first ten seasons of his career.
In 2020 the Vikings struggled immensely at getting pressure on opposing quarterbacks. It seems as if Mike Zimmer took his unit’s struggles personally as they attempted to rebuild the defensive line throughout the offseason.
The head coach announced last week when the Vikings originally signed Griffen that he was going to be a situational pass rusher. This shows how far the depth has come from a year ago, as the defensive line looks to be a strong suit for Minnesota in 2021.
Griffen may be 33 years old, but his experience in the league could do wonders for some of the young players on the roster. In 161 career games he’s totaled 388 tackles, 80.5 sacks, nine forced fumbles and six fumble recoveries, according to Pro Football Reference.
On top of having a long track record of getting after the quarterback, Griffen showed in the Vikings’ final preseason game that he still has a quick jump. Age may limit the amount of snaps he’ll get this season, but he still has the chance to make an impact throughout the season.
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