Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson is in more video games than most NFL players. Yes, he is in "Madden" like everyone on an NFL roster, but Jefferson is also set to become the first football player to be featured in "Fortnite," Adam Schefter reported on Monday.
The Griddy dance, which Jefferson often does, will be included in the game. The "Get Griddy" Emote will drop in the Item Shop on Wednesday, Epic Games announced. He will also be the first NFL player to have a Locker Bundle, which will include a special outfit, Back Bling, the Get Griddy and Signature Shuffle emotes, and a weathered gold pickaxe -- among other items.
Jefferson seemed ecstatic about the news:
Yesssirrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Dreams coming true @LAHGRIDDY2x https://t.co/yE6ntbiqC4
— JJETS✈️ (@JJettas2) April 26, 2021
According to Vikings.com, Jefferson, 21, began playing "Fortnite" with family in friends in 2017, when the game came out, but does not play it as often anymore. He still occasionally plays and recently said he played with 40 fans in a partnership with Verizon.
Jefferson did not create the dance - it was actually Allen Davis who first performed it. Davis will be getting paid and, according to Schefter, he is also in talks with Jefferson's team for a possible collaboration down the road.
Allen Davis invented the dance. They have paid Davis - @LAHGRIDDY2x - and are in conversations with Justin Jefferson’s team for future collaboration. Jefferson isn’t trying to steal the dance and is sending the ladder back down.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 26, 2021
Jefferson has been working on getting the dance on a video game for some time. When he was recently asked if The Griddy was a touchdown celebration in "Madden," he explained, "Not yet. That was my goal the whole season. Hopefully we can get that done."
While the dance still isn't in "Madden," getting it in the wildly popular "Fortnite" franchise is a pretty nice consolation prize.
