5 Players Mike Vrabel Could Lure to the Patriots

After a disappointing 4-13 season, the New England Patriots need drastic changes this offseason. The team’s first move, not even an hour after their win over the Buffalo Bills, was to fire first-year head coach Jerod Mayo. Not a week later, the team reached a multi-year agreement with former Super Bowl-winning Patriot linebacker Mike Vrabel to become the team’s next head coach.

Now that he is in place, Vrabel–who has had coaching stops at Ohio State, the Houston Texans, the Tennessee Titans, and most recently the Cleveland Browns–has an opportunity to bring players he previously coached to his new team which is in desperate need of an influx of talent across all phases of the game.   

1. Jeffrey Simmons, DT, Tennessee Titans

The Patriot’s defense was so bad last year because they couldn’t consistently generate pressure on the opposing team’s quarterbacks. The team ranked 29th in the NFL with a 28.7 percent pressure rate and finished dead last with only 28 total sacks last season.

One addition that would drastically change those numbers is Tennessee Titans franchise cornerstone, Jeffrey Simmons. The former first-round pick in the 2019 NFL draft has plenty of familiarity with Coach Vrabel as Vrabel coached him for his first five pro seasons.

Simmons, 27, is one of the premier defensive linemen in the league. He finished last season with 76 total tackles, 5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles. Earlier this week the rumors began swirling when Simmons liked a tweet from a fan suggesting that the team needs to start the Mike Vrabel era by trading for Simmons.

Simmons quickly shot down all rumors, at least for the time being, with a tweet of his own. But that doesn't make this any less of a great fit.