everson griffen-minnesota vikings

The Minnesota Vikings’ win over the New Orleans Saints in last weekend’s NFC Divisional Playoff game delivered one of the absolute greatest endings in NFL history. Down one point with only seconds to play, Vikings quarterback Case Keenum found receiver Stefon Diggs for a long completion, Saints safety Marcus Williams whiffed a tackle and Diggs cruised to the end zone to give Minnesota a miracle walk-off victory.

Just about the whole football-watching country was shocked by the final play, but no one more so than Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen, whose incredible reaction was captured by Showtime’s Inside the NFL cameras.

Griffen’s shock was so complete that multiple teammates failed to shake him from it. As everyone around him danced and cheered, he just stuck out his arms in wonder. And the response seemed entirely genuine, too. After all, he couldn’t have known cameras were trained specifically on him in that chaotic moment.

The greatest sports moments aren’t only thrilling, they’re also stunning and unforeseen. So it figures that the best celebration of the NFL Playoffs so far wasn’t someone jumping up and down in glee but rather someone staring blankly ahead. Griffen, like the rest of us, was beyond excited. He was delirious.

About Alex Putterman

Alex is a writer and editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. He has written for The Atlantic, VICE Sports, MLB.com, SI.com and more. He is a proud alum of Northwestern University and The Daily Northwestern. You can find him on Twitter @AlexPutterman.