Everson Griffen is determined to find a team for the 2020 season sooner rather than later so that he can enter team facilities with training camps to kick off shortly across the NFL. The Minnesota Vikings would still like to bring Griffen back, but their biggest NFC North rival is making a run at signing him. Per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the Green Bay Packers are among the teams to express interest in Griffen and the feeling is mutual.
Green Bay would be adding Griffen to a pass rush that already has Preston Smith and Za'Darius Smith on a defensive unit that was tied for 15th in the NFL in sacks last season. The Packers were just 20th in the league in pressure percentage at 21.8%, so there's a need to add more firepower to their pass rush. Griffen is one of the best pass rushers available on the market, finishing with 41 tackles, 24 quarterback hits, and eight sacks in 15 games for the Minnesota Vikings last season. He recorded 35 pressures and 13 quarterback knockdowns in a Pro Bowl year. Griffen has 355 tackles and 74.5 sacks in 10 seasons with nine forced fumbles. The 32-year-old Griffen has three double-digit sack seasons in his career.
The Vikings would like to bring Griffen back to a defense that finished 16th in pressures (143) and tied for fifth in sacks (48) last season. Minnesota's 54 hurries were 20th in the NFL.
Minnesota has Danielle Hunter and Ifeadi Odenigbo on its defensive line, as the pair combined for 21.5 sacks last season. Bringing Griffen back would solidify a pass rush that invested in D.J. Wonnum and Kenny Willekes in the draft. Griffen would help the development of the two young edge rushers and take some pressure off of Anthony Zettel, who is in line to be the No. 3 defensive end.
The Arizona Cardinals are also one of the teams reportedly interested in Griffen as they seek extra pass rushers to pair with Chandler Jones and Jordan Phillips. Arizona's defense finished with 40 sacks last season, tied for 17th in the NFL, while their hurry percentage of 7.7% was the sixth-lowest in the league.
