Patriots Coaches Will Have ‘Three Simple Jobs’ Under Mike Vrabel
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel is already getting to work in Foxborough.
Vrabel was named the franchise’s newest head coach Sunday and introduced Monday at Gillette Stadium. The change of direction offers New England a new culture run by Vrabel, an eight-year Patriots veteran and three-time Super Bowl champion, who highlighted a few requirements for the team’s coaching staff.
“I will tell you this, as long as I’m the head coach here, our coaches will have three simple jobs — and they sound simple, and they’re probably not as simple as we want to make them be,” Vrabel told reporters, per a team-provided transcript. “They want to teach, they want to develop, and they want to inspire our players by making a connection. We’re going to make strong connections with our players so that we can coach them and we can push them. I’ve really believed in this system, and I believe in having great teachers, great developers, and also coaches that will inspire our men by making a connection so that they know exactly what makes them tick.”
Chances are the Patriots won’t retain offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt or defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington, who reportedly interviewed with the Cincinnati Bengals, following the Jerod Mayo departure. So, that leaves Vrabel responsible for collaborating with owner Robert Kraft and executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf to seek out candidates to fill New England’s sideline this offseason.
Vrabel rejoins the Patriots having accumulated coaching experience with the Houston Texans, Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns.
That alone should grant Vrabel plenty of time to build the necessary relationships and connections needed to identify staffers that could help the soon-to-be first-year Patriots head coach rebuild a franchise which is coming off a second straight 4-13 season.
It’s been three seasons since the Patriots last appeared in the playoffs and seven since their last playoff victory, and stability hasn’t been on New England’s side. Vrabel will become the team’s third head coach to command the sidelines in the past three years while quarterback Drake Maye looks to cement his position after the failed stints of Cam Newton and Mac Jones.
The coaching staff took a step back, presenting little-to-no reason for Kraft and Wolf to start from scratch. Mayo lost the fan base’s trust and support as Gillette Stadium erupted with “Fire Mayo” chants in Week 17, encapsulating the dumpster fire that was New England’s unwatchable run in 2024.
Vrabel’s fresh perspective and respective expertise offer an inherent glimmer of hope. The Patriots weren’t the only franchise willing to hand Vrabel the leadership keys and they were one of six teams across the league entering the offseason without a head coach.
“We’re going to demand effort and finish,” Vrabel said. “People ask what non-negotiables are. Our effort and our finish is going to be the contract that we make with our teammates. That will be my job to make sure. That’s the greatest compliment that you could ever give a coach, by the way.”
Vrabel was New England’s biggest need but there’s still plenty of work left to do moving forward.