Drunk-driving charge dropped as Everson Griffen reaches plea deal

Former Minnesota Vikings defensive lineman Everson Griffen has agreed to a plea deal related to his drunk-driving arrest on July 22, 2023. 

According to court documents, Griffen signed the plea agreement on Feb. 22, and in doing so admitted that he drove "carelessly" and "at a high rate of speed while weaving in and out of lanes of traffic, after consuming alcohol."

Griffen was originally charged in Carver County District Court with 4th-degree DWI and speeding after his July 2023 arrest while driving a 1968 Pontiac LeMans on Powers Boulevard near Utica Lane in Chanhassen around 10:30 a.m.

The citation issued to Griffen alleges he was traveling at an estimated speed of 60 mph in a 40 mph zone, while also illegally passing vehicles as a deputy attempted to catch up.

He eventually pulled over and told the officer he was on his way to the grand opening of a restaurant, having recently left a casino. 

The deputy claimed Griffen had "bloodshot, watery, and glassy" eyes and "performed poorly" on a field sobriety test. He gave a preliminary breath test of 0.09%, just over Minnesota's legal limit of 0.08% for driving.

Griffen, who lives in Mound, Minn., left the Vikings in 2020 after ten years with the team. He had brief stints with the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions before returning to the Vikings in 2021.

Griffen had additional driving citations following his drunk-driving arrest, including an Oct. 28 incident in which was cited for failure to drive with due care after crashing into a fence and gazebo in Mound. And then on Dec. 7 he was pulled over in Shakopee for driving 55 mph in a 30 mph zone.