_2.gif "Time.com 50 Best Websites 2008")
Following in the footsteps of Bill Schroeder and Marcus Robinson, Robert Griffith has signed a ceremonial deal with the Vikings so he can retire as a member of the team.
Griffith’s signing is probably a bit more worthy of ceremony than the two wideouts. He made one Pro Bowl and two All-Pro teams as a safety on some good Viking teams in the late 90’s. He played with the team from 1994-2001 before moving on to the Browns and Cardinals. He last saw action during the 2006 season with Arizona.
Off the field, Griffith’s most notable accomplishment may be an appearance in the inaugural Sports Illustrated for Women swimsuit issue. He also appeared in a video for Def Jam artist Kelly Price which, according to his personal site, increased his female fan quotient by 100%. And, yes, it is a slow news day.
June 26th, 2008 at 2:29 pm
I have heard of teams/players doing these deals and I have always wondered if the player gets paid from this contract as well or if it is just for show.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: Not yet rated
June 26th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
Awesome, my female fan quotient is only at 18%.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: Not yet rated
June 26th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Slow news day??? For te love of God, make something up. At least report someone dead or find a new angle on spygate.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: 1 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
June 26th, 2008 at 4:04 pm
From what I understand, Brett F. wants to sign a ceremonial deal to retire from the Vikings as well.
Ziggy gracefully declined
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: 5 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
June 26th, 2008 at 4:09 pm
Actually Brett owned the Vikings, not the other way around.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: 1 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
June 26th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
40 for 60 reeks of vinegar and water.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: 1 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
June 26th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
I think it is a classy move on the part of the Vikings to allow him to do it. It also speaks of what he obviously thinks of the franchise, in wanting to have them as the last franchise he will be affiliated with as a professional.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: 5 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
June 26th, 2008 at 7:41 pm
Actually Brett Favre could take 10 years off, come back and start for the Vikings and probably be the best QB they ever had, but then again, its not saying much given its the Vikings.
Good luck to the BIQUEENS trying to win anything with a starting QB with career QB rating of 69 and an IQ even lower.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: 1 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
June 26th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
I guess Griffith could have signed a contract to retire as a Packer. Then again, had he signed a contract with Green Bay, he would have been the undisputed best safety on the roster and not retired at all.
Also, I don’t know where the Packer fans get off mocking Minnesota’s QB situation, considering they don’t have a QB on their roster that would even crack the Minnesota QB depth chart.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: 5 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
June 27th, 2008 at 7:50 am
I don’t know about mocking the BIQUEENS, I thought I was just keeping it real, stating the facts. (ok, BIQUEENS is a mocking term but if you are going to wear purple as your team colors, you might as well head straight to the bath house on Saturday night and be prepared to grab your ankles, an apt analogy to actuall being a BIQUEENS fan),
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: 3 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
June 27th, 2008 at 10:00 am
His wife was his fan, now Kelly Price is too. 100% increase.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: Not yet rated
June 27th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
@gonz
dont know about him being the UNDISPUTED best safety. bigby is a nice player
as far as GBs QBs not cracking the MN depth chart you have GOT to be kidding, right?
your not really that dillusional are you? you have a division II QB as your started and a 5th round rookie- the pack have a first rounder and a second rounder. i wil just assume you were being facicious…..
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: Not yet rated
June 27th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
“A bit more newsworthy?”
In case you were feeling too lazy to research Griffith more than his Wikipedia page, he was a former CFLer and special teams standout who earned his stripes and kept his mouth shut while hitting opposing players in theirs. He’s kept out of trouble, played his heart out on every play (even if he was a liability in coverage sometimes), and won over the fans. Bill Schroeder? Not even his teammates liked him. Marcus Robinson? Minnesota chose Troy Williamson over him.
The main reason you should care more than you do about Robert Griffith is as follows, from a profile I found. While a PR profile may be mostly fluff, being a lifelong Vikings fan I know how much he did for the community:
If his time wasn’t already well spent, Griffith makes time to give back to the community. In 1998, he established the Robert Griffith Foundation, which provides scholarships for deserving high school seniors. He has raised more than $150,000 in scholarship monies and currently has 25 scholarship recipients in college.
Griffith’s community efforts have not gone unnoticed. He has earned honorable mentions for the NFLPA’s Unsung Hero Award, NFL’s Ed Block Courage Award, NFL Special Effort Award, Minnesota Vikings Community Man of the Year Award and nominated for the Byron “Whizzer” White Humanitarian Award (the NFLPA most prestigious award).
While he was good but not great with his skills (though he hit like a truck), he was(and is) a role model for everyone, which is rare in today’s turd-filled NFL.
But eh, it’s a bit more notable than Bill Schroeder.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: Not yet rated
June 30th, 2008 at 11:28 am
JimmySmith is just insecure about his team. The “Packers”.
C’mon, that’s pretty gay. And not to mention THEIR colors
are olive and mustard, the color of something that might
exit one’s rear end.
(report as inappropriate)
Rating: Not yet rated