In the wake of Jerod Mayo being relieved of his duties as New England Patriots head coach, Mike Vrabel stands out as the most obvious candidate to replace him.
Vrabel served as head coach of the Tennessee Titans for six years (2018-23). Prior to his coaching career, he played 14 NFL seasons including eight with the Patriots (2001-08). The former linebacker helped New England to three Super Bowl titles and was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2023.
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Fellow ex-Pats linebacker Ted Johnson played alongside Vrabel from 2001 to 2004. On Monday's The Breakdown, Johnson shared what he would tell Patriots ownership about his former teammate as they evaluate him for the team's head-coaching vacancy.
"If they were to ask me, 'Who's the smartest player you ever played with?' I'd say it was Mike Vrabel and it wasn't even close," Johnson said. "Who had the most energy and came to work every single day with incredible focus and energy, and that would be Mike Vrabel."
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Vrabel's football IQ translated to the sideline, as he earned NFL Coach of the Year honors in 2021. His Titans tenure came to an unceremonious end after the 2023 season, but he did enough during his six seasons in Tennessee to show he deserves another shot at a head coaching gig.
Should that opportunity come in Foxboro? After heaping praise on Vrabel, Johnson shared one concern he has with his former teammate taking over for Mayo.
"The one thing that gives me a little bit of pause with Mike, I'd like to know what his offensive philosophy is," Johnson said. "Because if you look at his time there in Tennessee, it really was kind of a more conservative offense, really highlighting the run game versus the passing game, and I don't know if that was because of the limitations of the quarterback, but that's how he ran his offense.
"So I just wonder, does he have the offensive mind to bring the Patriots in for the next 10 years, considering where the offenses are going? It's important for me to want to know from Mike who his offensive coordinator is going to be and what his offensive philosophy is.
"I would love Mike to be the head coach here. I think he'd be a great culture setter. I just worry about what he's thinking on offense and how he sees the modern-day offense looking."
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As Johnson alludes to, whoever the Patriots hire as head coach will be tasked with furthering the development of their prized young quarterback Drake Maye. The offense as a whole will be expected to take a significant lead forward in 2025.
Given how Vrabel ran his offense at Tennessee, it would behoove Patriots owner Robert Kraft to at least consider an offensive-minded coach. New England reportedly requested to interview Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson for the role.
As for the front office, Eliot Wolf's job appears safe for now. Kraft stated Wolf will remain in the mix, though according to our Phil Perry, there is no guarantee he will be leading the personnel department in 2025.
Watch the full episode of The Breakdown below or on YouTube:
