Vikings DT says Minnesota doesn't have a 'leader' without Kirk Cousins

As he finishes up his illustrious pro career out of Michigan State with the Atlanta Falcons, Kirk Cousins leaves behind a great leadership void on the Minnesota Vikings. While the hope is that, in time, No. 10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy will rise to the occasion and fill that void, Vikings defensive tackle Harrison Phillips has some concerns about the intangibles the Vikings lost with Cousins.

Phillips spoke on NFL Total Access on Wednesday about the Vikings' offseason. Minnesota had a year from hell at the quarterback position with four different guys starting games for them under center. Yes, most of that had to do with Cousins tearing his Achiles midway through the season. However, Phillips' tone on the situation sounds a bit pessimistic. He knows what they had in Cousins.

Cousins was well-liked by everyone in the Vikings' locker room, a staple over the last six seasons.

"There's gonna be a huge loss. Kirk Cousins as a person, as a leader, as a teammate, that's a big void in your locker room. One of the most humble guys that I've ever been around. Servant leader, just a great motivator. He's great. To ask one person to fill that void is probably not probable."

Phillips offered a potential solution to filling the leadership void vacated by Cousins in his departure.

"So what we're going to do is have a great leadership team, which we've already seen. There's already guys that I've seen these last few seasons being on this roster -- some are captains, some are not captains yet but will be in their careers -- and so we're going to pass that torch off and kind of division of labor."

I would expect that Phillips will take on a bigger role in that department on the defensive side of the ball. Minnesota not only lost Cousins in free agency, but edge rusher Danielle Hunter left as well.

"We're going to all carry that load together, and maybe we can be a better football team for it. Kirk's obviously amazing. I've learned a lot from him and the leadership side of thing, and that's an area I'm trying to step up and improve my game by working on those abilities."

There is one big thing that I cannot get past with what Phillips had to say about Cousins leaving...

Harrison Phillips says Kirk Cousins' leadership will be missed in Minnesota

For as much as I like McCarthy as a prospect coming out of Michigan, I sometimes wonder if he has it in him to be a leader in a locker room full of alpha males. Leading his peers in Ann Arbor is one thing, but will he have the gravitas to command 50-something 20 and 30-somethings with wives and kids back home and mortgages to pay? Cousins had a way of cutting through and relating to teammates.

I think, in time, McCarthy will be able to do that but keep in mind that he is not going to be the starter from the jump for the Vikings under center. That would be veteran journeyman Sam Darnold, a guy who knows this is his last chance to prove himself as an NFL starter. I am sure that Darnold will be a good teammate and will help McCarthy learn the ropes and such, but he has a career to keep alive.

Overall, just because Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was able to replace Cousins and Hunter in the draft with McCarthy and former Alabama star Dallas Turner, respectively, doesn't mean they are both ready to occupy those roles in a leadership sense. And even if they say they are ready for it, there are no guarantees the Vikings' locker room is going to listen to what they are preaching.

I don't know if this was the elephant in the room for the team, but Phillips may have identified another.