4 players that have had multiple stints with the Vikings
By Randy Smith
Everson Griffen – DE
Everson Griffen became a name that fans watched reek havoc on opposing quarterbacks season after season during his first tenure with the Vikings. A fourth-round pick out of USC, Griffen ended his first stint with Minnesota with 74.5 sacks, 16 pass deflections, and two interceptions.
Griffen left the Vikings for the Dallas Cowboys in 2020 and he was subsequently traded in the middle of the year to NFC North division rival Detroit Lions. In his 2020 campaign between both teams, Griffen tallied 5.5 sacks and four pass deflections, with a season-high of three coming during his tenure in Detriot.
He found his second stint in Minnesota after his two-team season and he signed with the Vikings in August of 2021. Griffen finished the season with five sacks. Similar to Mackensie Alexander, Griffen wasn’t a top priority for the Vikings to bring back after switching their defensive front, and instead went on to sign former Green Bay Packer Za’Darius Smith to a three-year, $42 million deal.
At 34-years-old, the chance of landing on another team may be slim for Griffen, and one-day contract or not, his tenure in the league will have him remembered as a Viking.
But Griffen is far from the last player to have a second stint in Minnesota, and far from the only Vikings legend to do it.