Just months after arriving in Dallas, Everson Griffen is headed back to the Midwest. Griffen, the USC product in his eleventh NFL season, is being traded to the Detroit Lions for a compensatory 6th round pick.
When he suits up for the Lions, Griffen will be playing for his third NFL team this year. The defensive end finished this past season in Minnesota, where he spent the first ten seasons of his career. He then signed with Dallas as a free agent this past March, fresh off his fourth Pro Bowl appearance in 2019.
In seven games this season, Griffen has recorded 2.5 sacks and 20 tackles for the Cowboys. He put up a sack and 5 tackles in last Sunday’s 23-3 loss to the struggling Washington Football Team.
The Cowboys confirmed that Griffen was on the trading block less than a day ago. Now, it is clear that they are overhauling part of their roster as their Super Bowl hopes to begin to dwindle.
After losing quarterback Dak Prescott for the season with a broken ankle, the Cowboys are struggling on offense. Also, their defense has always been a weakness.
Facing a recent head injury of their already-disappointing backup quarterback, Andy Dalton, Dallas may be, in fact, giving up on the 2020 season. Fortunately, if there is a winnable division for the Cowboys, it is the dismal NFC East. The division’s four teams are a combined 7-20-1 nearing the halfway point in the season. Despite their 2-5 record, Dallas is just a half-game back of the division-leading Eagles, who currently have a 2-4-1 record.
Because of the NFL’s COVID-19 policies, Griffen will not start this Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts. Instead, he will make his Lions debut in Week 9 against his former team, the Minnesota Vikings.
