Everson Griffen Has a New Gig
K. Joudry
|
A popular Vikings defender has taken on a job as an assistant coach for a high school in Minnesota.
According to Darren Wolfson and KSTP, Everson Griffen has been working as a pass-rushing specialist for a high school football team. More specifically, he is coaching at Minnetonka High School. Griffen explains in the video clip that he has a “PhD in football,” so he’s looking to pass along some valuable knowledge.
Everson Griffen, High School Football Coach
Griffen got into the NFL in 2010 as a Minnesota Vikings 4th-round selection.
Initially, things began fairly slowly. Across his opening four years, Griffen picked up just a single start, but he did plenty to convince the team to keep him around long term. After all, his role as a backup defensive end still involved snagging 17.5 sacks across his rookie deal.
In 2014, Everson Griffen became a full-time starter. He piled up 12 sacks, 24 QB hits, and 14 TFLs. One also thinks of the 2017 season as another high point since he picked up a career-high 13 sacks and finished the season as a second-team All Pro.
His final years in the NFL featured the defender bouncing around a few different teams. He played for Detroit and Dallas in 2020 before getting a chance to come back to Minnesota in 2021.
With NFL football in the rear view mirror, Griffen is now committing himself to bringing along the next generation of great pass rushers. Darren Wolfson is the one who covers the story, noting that he’s pleased to see that Griffen “has found happiness helping the pass rush as an ass’t coach for the Minnetonka Skippers.”
Griffen goes on to say that he feels like he’s helping the kids to improve at football and that he’s relaying the insight he picked up from Andre Patterson (the former d-line coach for the Vikings who was co-defensive coordinator toward the end of his time with Minnesota). The defender also notes that he’s planning on being a high school coach long term.
Cherished due to his outgoing personality and relentless effort on the field, Griffen is a franchise great who still inspires plenty of affection from the fans. He’s 8th in franchise history for sacks with 79.5 and 4th in tackles for a loss with 90.
Everyone at PurplePTSD wishes Griffen well in the next chapter of his football career. Best of luck, Coach Griffen.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this piece.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter and as a co-host for Notes from the North, a humble Vikings podcast.