After finishing with a combined record of 8-26 over the last two seasons, the New England Patriots needed to reset the entire team from top to bottom, including both players and coaches. In doing so, the Patriots hired Mike Vrabel to be the next head coach, and he had his own staff ready to go.
With Vrabel running the team along with his trusted staff, the Patriots are finally moving in the right direction after years of spiraling downward in every aspect, including coaching, personnel decisions, and most of all, upsetting the loyal fanbase during this time.
From the offseason and through the preseason, it’s clear that any coaching concerns can be put to bed with Vrabel running the team. He arrived prepared with a structured plan to rebuild and retool the team to be successful.
Mike Vrabel Has Put Patriots' Coaching Concerns to Bed
Vrabel's impact started with the 2025 NFL draft. For the last handful of years, the Patriots have failed in the draft, and it has resulted in their outlook being impacted for years down the road by not having adequate talent and depth at essential positions.
This problem dates back to Bill Belichick failing to draft well and for not having the team in a better position with the personnel before he and the team parted ways at the end of the 2023 season.
Part of Vrabel’s plan was to clean up the roster, and he did exactly that by parting ways with the longest tenured players on the team and some captains as well. Vrabel cut Jabril Peppers, David Andrews, Ja’Whaun Bentley, Joe Cardona, Cole Strange, and Kendrick Bourne, and New England even traded Davon Godchaux.
On that same note, Vrabel also released players that were recent draft picks in Jaheim Bell, Tyrese Robinson, Sidy Sow, Layden Robinson, Javon Baker, and Isaiah Bolden. His personnel decisions showed that he didn’t want many players who were on the team from the former coaching regimes. Vrabel is creating his own culture, and he wants the players to be coached his way.
The Patriots also went 2-1 in preseason action. Although exhibition games don't matter much, the success shows that New England's vets and rookies are buying into Vrabel's vision.
The head coach of a football team is responsible for everything. He’s the face of the team and has to answer for everything. He gets the credit when it’s going right, and he gets criticized when things aren’t going right.
The preseason proved that coaching isn’t going to be a problem in New England this season, leaving Patriots fans excited for the Vrabel Era to finally begin.