«There is not a player on our team that is 100% healthy.»<\/b>
\n«There is not a player on our team that is 100% healthy.»
Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel stopped by WEEI\u2019s \u201cThe Greg Hill Show\u201d on Tuesday morning after the team made its return from Denver following the AFC Championship game win over the weekend.
Now Super Bowl bound, Vrabel discussed a range of topics in his weekly interview.
Here\u2019s a quick rundown:The Sunday snow in Denver.
After the Patriots notched a field goal on the opening possession of the second half, no other points were scored in the eventual 10-7 grinding victory over the Broncos.
Part of the explanation for both offenses struggling \u2014 beyond the quality of the opposing defenses \u2014 was the onset of a snowstorm.
\u201cThe wind was a factor, and then it was kind of a wet snow,\u201d said Vrabel of the challenging conditions.
\u201cThe footing was interesting,\u201d he added. \u201cThose are just things that you to be ready for, and try to plan for, and adjust accordingly.\u201d
Asked by former Patriots tight end Jermaine Wiggins (now a WEEI co-host) about why players weren\u2019t wearing specialized \u201cseven stud\u201d cleats for the conditions, Vrabel joked about the age gap.
\u201cIt\u2019s impossible to try to get these guys [to wear them]. They never use them growing up,\u201d he said of the different cleats. \u201cIt\u2019s like telling them to stay off their phones.\u201dDrake Maye\u2019s end-of-game improvisation
As the Patriots tried to clinch the game by getting one more first down, second-year quarterback Drake Maye opted improvise and run the ball himself around the edge.
Vrabel was asked if he was \u201cmad\u201d about the decision (as Maye predicted he might be).
\u201cNo,\u201d Vrabel replied. \u201cWhere the timeouts were and everything else, there are certain times where you\u2019re OK getting out of bounds if you get a first down. There are times where we\u2019d definitely like to stay in-bounds, but if you\u2019re in that situation, resetting the downs with them [not having] any timeouts, then we\u2019re good to go there.\u201d
Does he have a problem with Maye freelancing on the called play?
\u201cNo he doesn\u2019t go rogue,\u201d Vrabel explained. \u201cThose aren\u2019t things that does. We discuss those things. Josh [McDaniels] and I talk him through, and what want to do in five-minute [situations], plays that we have available, and those are always things that we can go to. Just trying to get everybody on the same page, and Drake was able to do that, and used his legs.\u201dSituational football
A component of Vrabel\u2019s head coaching style (even before coming to New England) was taking a page from Bill Belichick, and making sure that his team has an advantage in less common situations throughout the game.
Practicing \u201csituational football\u201d was a Belichick staple, and is also something Vrabel takes seriously. Still, he explained how he tried to not overwhelm players with various scenarios.
\u201cYeah I mean I think that\u2019s one thing that I\u2019m certainly proud of,\u201d he said of the team\u2019s preparedness. \u201cWe didn\u2019t start doing those until training camp, just because I thought there was so much to do in the offseason that you don\u2019t want to bog them down with all of these \u2014 I hate to call them one-timers. As critical as they are, you just don\u2019t want to bog them down because some guys become obsessed with it. Certainly I\u2019ve been down that rabbit hole.
\u201cWhat\u2019s too much?\u201d Vrabel asked. \u201cAre you going to take a hurry-up safety, you know what I mean? There\u2019s under four minutes and you get sacked inside the five-yard line, and you\u2019re down. You should run the punt team out there and take a safety, but you just line the offense up and hurry up and take a safety. These things like, \u2018OK that could happen. It\u2019s never happened, but it could.’\u201d
The other part of the process was getting players to trust in each other, and their problem-solving skills.
\u201cThen we got into training camp and started to build, and some of it didn\u2019t look good,\u201d Vrabel said of the situational practicing. \u201cI just said, \u2018Hey, bear with this. Just stay with it. Trust me, I\u2019ve been through this.\u2019 I\u2019ve seen young players \u2014 I\u2019ve seen all different players \u2014 not get it at first, not understand what the situation is. You just have to be willing to talk, answer the question, figure it out, trial and error. And then we got better at it.\u201dPlayers finding ways to stay motivated
After Patriots players (most notably Milton Williams) inevitably responded to prior rankings or predictions that placed New England lower than past opponents (including the Broncos), Vrabel was questioned about players comments about the subplot in the media.
\u201cHowever they have to get ready to play the football game, that\u2019s all I care about,\u201d he said.
Does he feel the team has been \u201cdisrespected\u201d by prognosticators?
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter. We\u2019re in the Super Bowl,\u201d Vrabel pointed out. \u201cWe can pump this thing up for 10 days. We\u2019re all compensated very well for what we do, so I don\u2019t think there\u2019s any disrespect from this building or my appreciation for our football team. It doesn\u2019t bother me.\u201dThe role of former Jets defensive lineman Leonard Taylor
A major play was made in the AFC Championship game by a reserve defensive lineman Leonard Taylor, when he tipped an attempted Broncos field goal with his outstretched hand.
Taylor, who went undrafted in 2024, was cut by the Jets in October. Signed initially to the Patriots\u2019 practice squad, his role has grown over time.
\u201cLenny T revenge game Week 7, it lives on,\u201d Vrabel joked. \u201cStarted with the Jets revenge game and now we have just built on it. It\u2019s the stuff that we find, really happy for him.\u201d
The Patriots didn\u2019t actually face the Jets until Week 11 (Week 7 was perhaps another revenge game of sorts for Vrabel, as New England beat the Titans 31-13).
\u201cHe\u2019s a great kid,\u201d Vrabel added of Taylor. \u201cWe\u2019ve talked about everybody\u2019s journey to their career looks a little differently. He was with the Jets, we were able to pick him up. Loved his attitude, his willingness to work and try to make some plays and help this team, and he made another one.\u201dThe references to \u201cThe Warriors\u201d
The Patriots, led by Vrabel, have made several references to the 1979 cult classic \u201cThe Warriors\u201d in recent weeks. Asked if anyone understood the reference prior to the season, Vrabel laughed.
\u201cThere wasn\u2019t a single [one]. I had to show them the video,\u201d he said. \u201cI had to actually show the movie.\u201d
The Patriots\u2019 coach clarified that this happened \u201ca while ago,\u201d but that the team\u2019s interest in it has persisted.
\u201cI\u2019m like let\u2019s see how this goes, and then next thing you know they\u2019re walking around the building we\u2019ve got guys with like the soy sauce bottles [clicking them together],\u201d Vrabel said (in another reference to the movie). \u201cThen Mack [Hollins] goes and buys the little beer bottles and empties them out.\u201dDrake Maye\u2019s shoulder
A Patriots subplot in the last 24 hours was the unconfirmed social media claim made by a former NFL team doctor that Drake Maye has a right shoulder injury he sustained during the AFC Championship game.
Vrabel naturally fielded a question about the video.
\u201cThere is not a player on our team that is 100% healthy,\u201d Vrabel said. He didn\u2019t address Maye\u2019s status specifically.
\u201cI would imagine we\u2019ll go through the injury report and whenever we have to turn that in, we\u2019ll turn that in. But nobody\u2019s 100%. This will be our 21st game.\u201d<\/p>\n