Josh Metellus has become a household name and a favorite among Minnesota Vikings fans. He plays almost every position on defense, is a great human being off the field, and has emerged as a leader on it.
The Vikings drafted Metellus in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL draft as a safety out of the University of Michigan. His career started slow, but he eventually became a special teams ace. Since then, he has transformed himself into an integral piece of the team’s core and an asset to everyone around him.
He became a starter for the first time last year, recording one interception, five passes deflected, four forced fumbles, 2.5 sacks, 116 tackles, and seven tackles for loss. If that isn’t the definition of diversity, I don’t know what is. He lined up at 10 of the 11 positions on defense and started in all 17 games. Metellus has officially rendered himself irreplaceable.
His game speaks for itself, but he’s so much more than that.
After sophomore receiver Jordan Addison was arrested on suspicion of DUI earlier this summer, Metellus said, “His mistakes is our mistakes. So, as a leader of the team, I put that on me. I woke up like, ‘Yeah, this is my fault. I gotta lead the young guys in a better direction.’ That’s what the leaders of the team are there for. We the ones that take the brunt of everything. We wear the ‘C’ on our chest for a reason. We got to lead the guys in the right way.”
Obviously, Addison’s incident was not directly his fault. Still, the fact that he feels he could do a better job leading the younger guys down a better path is an impressive trait.
That’s why I believe Metellus is irreplaceable. Most players want to be a team captain. You’re the talk of the locker room. People give you unconditional respect, and everyone knows your name. However, not every player embraces the responsibility.
It’s not about the pre-game speeches, it’s not about hyping up teammates, and it’s not about using your executive order because you think you know better than the guys who aren’t captains.
Being a captain is about checking up on your teammates to ensure they’re doing well mentally, how their families are doing, or helping out in the film room if someone doesn’t understand a specific concept. It’s not all about the “RAH!-RAH!” stuff. The best captains are the guys willing to do the little things in the background when nobody is watching.
Josh Metellus does exactly that.
“You can feel when somebody’s teammates really love them, really appreciate them, and really want to follow them into battle, and he’s one of those guys,” Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said about Metellus.
Metellus responded how you’d expect him to, saying, “It comes with a lot on your shoulders, but it shows that just by being me … I can be that guy for the Vikings. That’s always been the goal. I want to make an impact as much as possible to help us win games.”
As much as fans love his impact on the field, he’s doing just as much, if not more, off the field. In past years, he’s supported PTSD victims and the pro-choice movement through the “My Cleats, My Cause” week put on by the NFL.
He joined former Vikings superstar John Randle last year to raise money to build a new playground at Glen Lake Elementary School. In May, he also volunteered to speak at the University of St. Thomas on how mental well-being has contributed to his success as a professional athlete.
Regardless of how you feel about Josh Metellus as a player, he’s an outstanding human being. He’s exactly the type of person you want in your corner, not to mention an essential component of the Vikings’ defense.
