The Vikings Can't Become A Cult Of Personality

Minnesota Vikings special teams coordinator Matt Daniels often talks about how he’s been part of teams that were coach-led and others that were player-led. Almost universally, he feels that the most successful teams are player-led. Daniels, 33, has the makings of a future head coach and embodies a lot of the Vikings’ culture. Known as Hat because of his hard-hitting ways as a player (as in, he "laid the hat"), Daniels has used his charisma and understanding of the game to connect with his players and bring out the best in them.

Special teams can often be an overlooked phase of the game. Nobody thinks about the long-snapper until he flips the ball over the punter’s head. But the Vikings have made a point of valuing the unit and how Daniels goes about his business. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Kevin O'Connell wear the “ST” hats that Daniels gives his players. O’Connell and Adofo-Mensah emphasize collaboration with their players rather than running an authoritarian regime. O’Connell has talked about how he leaned on his captains last season as they engaged in the first season of their “competitive rebuild.” But with half of them gone, who will he consult? And who will he elevate to replace the captains Minnesota let go?

The Vikings had eight captains last year. Only four of them are still on the team.

• Kirk Cousins will be under center again this year. However, the Vikings opted not to sign him to a long-term deal, despite Cousins’ reported willingness to take a team-friendly deal. Instead, they deferred money to 2027, including $28.5 million in 2024 and $10.25 million in 2025.
• Brian O’Neill is Minnesota’s trusty right tackle and represents the second-highest cap hit at $19.66 million. The Vikings have him under contract until 2026, when he’ll become a 32-year-old free agent.
• Harrison Smith, 34, is Minnesota’s silent assassin. The reticent safety can attack opposing offenses from the backfield or line of scrimmage. He intuitively understands defense and hits with a vengeance.
• C.J. Ham has become Minnesota’s hometown hero after the Vikings released Adam Thielen in the offseason. The Duluth-born, Augustana-trained fullback has a role in O’Connell’s modern offense and leads Daniels’ special teams unit.

Under a cap-mandated belt tightening, the Vikings cut the other half of their leadership group.

• Dalvin Cook became the latest tenured player to leave Minnesota. The Vikings held onto him through the draft and the June 1 cut deadline, hoping to get a deal done. Ultimately, they cut him on June 9. Cook was generally well-liked in the locker room because of his affable personality and willingness to play through injury.
• Eric Kendricks was the heart and soul of the defense. The Star Tribune named him their Sportsperson of the Year in 2020 because of his community service and outspoken advocacy for racial justice. He also offered his thoughts about the team culture under Mike Zimmer and what needed to change when they hired Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell.
• Adam Thielen famously walked onto the team after playing at Mankato and became an All-Pro receiver. He worked with Justin Jefferson and the other receivers on communication with Cousins, showing them what the quarterback sees from behind the line compared to what they experience downfield.
• Patrick Peterson had a calming presence on his teammates. A future Hall of Famer, Peterson wasn’t the player he was at his peak with the Arizona Cardinals. But he understood Ed Donatell’s scheme and, along with Harrison Smith, tried to keep things together when the defense fell apart late in the season.

Before mentioning Cook’s skill as a player, O’Connell emphasized his leadership at mandatory minicamp on Tuesday after the Vikings had released him.

O’Connell offered a similar statement about Kendricks and Thielen when the Vikings released them. He also frequently mentioned Peterson’s impact as a leader last season. They had a unique leadership group. Thielen and Ham were the underdog hometown heroes. O’Neill and Smith were quieter players who led by example. Cook and Peterson were pretty chummy. Cousins offered a lot of dad vibes.

When O’Neill suffered a torn Achilles against the Green Bay Packers in Week 17, the Vikings named Josh Metellus his replacement captain. Minnesota’s sixth-round pick out of Michigan in 2020, Metellus made three starts at safety last year. However, he’s mostly excelled at special teams; 44 Bulldog, as Daniels calls him, is a menace on the field and has led special teams meetings when Daniels felt players had gotten tired of his voice. It’s one of many examples of Minnesota’s coaches collaborating with their players.

Ultimately, Minnesota’s captains should shape the team's personality, as they did last year. Still, it’s hard to figure out what it will look like. The Vikings will likely name Jefferson a team captain, but few people on earth can emulate his effervescent personality. In contrast, it’s probably unwise for the rest of the team to take on Cousins’ goofy vibes. But, most pertinently, they shouldn’t succumb to the authoritarian tendencies of the NFL and solely look to O’Connell for leadership.

Not only has O’Connell emphasized collaboration since his introductory press conference, but his personality is also hard to replicate. Outwardly, he’s laid-back and friendly. However, O’Connell is also incredibly structured and uses a lot of corporate jargon. He talks about being in the “learning phase” or “competitive phase” of training camp. When reporters asked him about Danielle Hunter’s absence, he said that the organization would be “solutions-oriented.” It’s in an effort to communicate goals clearly, but it’s also a stodgy persona for a team to take on.

Last year, the Vikings used the best of each leader’s qualities and rode their one-win wave as long as they could. But half of those captains are gone this season, meaning leadership roles have changed drastically. For the team to be player-led, they’ll need the next wave of players to define what kind of team Minnesota will be. Otherwise, it will be difficult to tap into last season’s magical run and build off it.