Local police are at the home of Minnesota Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen after Griffen shared concerning social media posts early Wednesday morning.
The Vikings confirmed Griffen was "cooperating with law enforcement" in an official statement shared on their verified social media accounts:
"Vikings representatives and the team's mental health professionals have been on-site at Everson Griffen's home since early this morning and are cooperating with law enforcement. Our only concern at this time is the safety and well-being of Everson and his family. We will have further comment at the appropriate time."
Several screenshots of text conversations that included the phrases "I need help" and "people are trying to kill me," as well as a video showing the defensive end holding a gun were shared on Griffen's verified Instagram account early Wednesday morning, KSTP reports.
A Minnetrista Police Department release obtained by KSTP confirmed Griffen called police shortly after 3:00 a.m. for help and claimed an intruder was inside his home.
The defensive end told police that he fired a weapon but no one was injured.
Officers were unable to locate an intruder upon arriving at Griffen's home.
Vikings team psychologists and law enforcement officials have kept continued communication throughout Wednesday morning with Griffen, who refused to exit his home after calling police.
"At this time, law enforcement officers are confident Griffen is alone inside the home and continue to work with him to resolve the situation."
Griffen has a documented history with serious mental health episodes in the past, which included police responding to a Vikings practice in September 2018 in which the former Pro Bowler was involved in an incident described as "explosive, screaming and yelling," leading to being ordered to get a mental health evaluation before returning to the team.
A Minneapolis police report filed in September 2018 accused Griffen -- whose name was redacted -- of threatening to shoot Hotel Ivy staffers unless he was allowed into his room.
A source with knowledge confirmed Griffen was identified as the suspect in the report to KSTP.
Police never found a gun when responding to the scene and allowed Griffen to exit the hotel on his own account.
Griffen shared social media posts in 2018 apologizing for the two incidents stating, "I am extremely grateful for the support I have received from my family, the Vikings organization, my teammates, and our tremendous fan base," viaKSTP.
The former University of Southern California standout spent his first 10 seasons with the Vikings (2010-19) before signing a one-year contract with the Dallas Cowboys in August 2020 and being traded to the Detroit Lions two months later.
Griffen re-joined the Vikings this past offseason and has made six starts in nine total appearances during the 2021 season.
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