Harrison Phillips fills more than one void

Going into training camp, the New York Jets had serious concerns regarding their defensive tackle position. Throughout the preseason, those concerns were only exacerbated.

That was until the Jets acquired former Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Harrison Phillips. Entering his eighth year in the league, the gap-stuffing big man had built a reputation for being an excellent run stopper.

In his debut game with Gang Green—a 34-32 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers—the former third-round tackle out of Stanford did just that.

An underappreciated big man

Harrison Phillips’ stat sheet doesn’t stand out during New York’s loss, which is nothing unusual for his role. The 29-year-old recorded just two tackles. Pro Football Focus even graded Phillips’ performance at a rough-looking 25.2.

What the veteran showed, though, looked far better on tape than any statistical data could. After a year of struggles stopping the run, Phillips was a key part in New York holding the Steelers to under four yards a carry on Sunday.

His impact stretches well beyond the field, though. Head coach Aaron Glenn made it clear how important Phillips has become to the team before Wednesday’s practice in preparation for the Buffalo Bills.

Leadership

“Legit leadership qualities. He’s very selfless,” Glenn said. “He’s gonna pour into all these guys as much as he has to make sure that they understand what it takes to win.

“He’s tough, he’s hard-nosed, he’s competitive. He’s everything about a defensive lineman that I like. We’re fortunate to have a guy like that.”

After the game, Phillips stated his hope was that he would only get better with the Jets as the season continued. He joked that he hoped opening day was the worst game of the year for him.

Glenn, though, was stunned by that answer. He told reporters the team would be in great shape if Sunday was Phillips’ worst game with the team.

For a player who was acquired just days before the start of the regular season, Phillips was behind the eight-ball in preparing for the regular season. The numbers don’t support the idea that he had a good game, but the tape, and more importantly, the coaching staff, couldn’t disagree more.

All this makes New York Jets defensive tackle Harrison Phillips even more important heading into the Week 2 contest against his former team, the Buffalo Bills.