“I’m just happy that things worked out the way they did and they welcomed me back with open arms,” the former Minnesota Vikings‘ pass rusher, Everson Griffen, said ahead of the 2021 season, as Minnesota re-signed him after he moved from Dallas to Detroit during the pandemic in 2020. Griffen was excited to line up once again for the Vikings, and for the majority of the season, he did.

On November 26, 2021, however, the Vikings had to place him on the non-football illness list, as Griffen dealt with a personal mental health issue earlier that week. A week later, it was revealed that Griffen had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The condition resulted from years of depression that he battled. But now, the Vikings legend has revealed good news as he’s now approaching one-year of Sobriety.

“Life has given me every chance imaginable to keep my friends, protect my name, build a legacy my family could be proud of, and live an outstanding life, but I’ve been distant because I’ve been deep in the lonely work of owning that it’s all been my fault, the repeated mistakes, the burnt bridges, the pain I caused myself and others, the guilt and same, and the hidden hurt I carried from childhood that showed up as a cry for help nobody fully saw,” he wrote on Instagram.

“I was blessed with success and opportunities most only dream of, survived amounts of drugs and partying that should have taken me out many times over, and I’m approaching a year of sobriety that is still brutally hard every single day, yet God’s favor kept me here when I didn’t deserve it. I’m grateful, I’m humbled, I’m staying 100% real with Him and myself, and I’m finally ready to go deep into my full authentic story from the beginning, the truth, the fear, the resilience, the grit, the new look at life, and the chances I still have, so I can grow every day and share the no-sugarcoating wisdom that might help somebody else understand their own pain and find strength to keep going. I had CHANCES. I’m scared but there is never a right time. The time is now. Buckle up shit is about to get 100% real!!!”

Griffen’s mental health issues first came to light during the 2018 season. The Vikings had revealed that the pass-rusher had been “explosive, screaming, and yelling” at the team facility. The team notified him and his agent that Griffen wasn’t allowed to enter the building until he underwent a mental health evaluation.

While no one knew at that time, Griffen revealed in 2020 that from October 2018 through the end of the season, he was living in a sober house and missed multiple games during the 2018 season. But Griffen returned to the Vikings, where he finished the season with 5.5 sacks, as the pass rusher was returning to a healthy lifestyle.

“Am I back to myself? Yeah, I’m back to smiling, joking, that fun guy to be around, but I truly have an understanding of the things that I have to hold myself accountable with day in and day out,” he said during the 2019 offseason. “That’s what I took upon myself this offseason to handle and make sure I got a good handle on that, to be able to come back with an open mind and ready to play football at a high level again.”

But his struggles weren’t over yet. In fact, Griffen battled substance abuse and was arrested multiple times. First for driving under the influence in July 2023 and later in May 2024 on charges of DWI and cocaine possession. But it’s fair to say that, looking back at his struggles during the 2018 season and over the last couple of years, Everson Griffen now sees them as an eye-opener, while approaching one-year of Sobriety.