The New England Patriots completed a brief coaching search and, to nobody's surprise, officially announced Mike Vrabel as the franchise's new head coach Sunday.
Vrabel was one of four candidates interviewed this past week. But given all the reporting, it was pretty clear that he was the top choice throughout the process.
Vrabel, who replaces Jerod Mayo as the head coach, has a long history with the Patriots. He was a three-time Super Bowl champion as a linebacker in Foxboro from 2001 through 2008. He was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2023.
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Now he returns to New England in a different role -- head coach and leader of the team. After back-to-back 4-13 seasons with a rebuild that is struggling, Vrabel has a pretty tough job in front of him.
🔊 Patriots Talk Podcast: Instant reaction to the Patriots hiring Mike Vrabel | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube
On the latest episode of NBC Sports Boston's Patriots Talk Podcast, our insiders Tom E. Curran and Phil Perry explained why Vrabel is the right hire for what New England needs right now.
"It comes down to this: The Patriots, if they were a patient, would have myriad illnesses and serious conditions presenting," Curran said. "Among them is offensive football, among them is the offensive line, among them are wide receivers. But the biggest ailment that needs to be addressed and fixed first is the dysfunction that the Patriots are experiencing.
"Unfortunately -- as much as Mayo tried and as skilled as I think he will be when he's in a better situation -- the leadership void and the messaging and the direction of the team lapsed in 2024. And I think that Vrabel with a year off, again, this is the most critical aspect of this, with a year off he had the ability to hone what he would look at as his message for himself going forward, what he would want to see from a football team.
"We already know that he's incredibly intelligent. Bill Belichick, I remember in 2002 -- I covered Vrabel throughout his time with the Patriots, all eight years of it -- and I remember Belichick in 2002 looking back at the 2001 season and talking about how many players performed brilliantly and saying that Vrabel didn't make one mental mistake the entire season.
"So he's smart as hell. He's also extremely disciplined and demanding. I think the Patriots do need that. If we think about the Mayo season, he was very tough in practices, long physical practices. But as we hear as the season has ended, some people were talking about, well, the discipline wasn't what it should be. And we look at a lot of guys who were pushing the envelope continuously.
"Bill Belichick, quite frankly, was not as tough a coach in his final seasons. He didn't have long practices. They weren't extremely physical. He was certainly demanding, but he also put bad players on the field time and time and time again. So Vrabel comes in with a kind of no bulls--t attitude."
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There is plenty to fix on the field for the Patriots. They were the third-lowest scoring team at 17 points per game, and they ranked 31st out of 32 teams in total yards per game on offense. The defense ranked 22nd in total yards allowed, 31st in takeaways and 29th in third-down conversion percentage. The wide receiver group was the worst in the league, and the pass rush was pretty much non-existent.
But the off-the-field aspects of the team need repairing, too, and that's something Vrabel can begin to address from Day 1.
"His biggest challenge, first and foremost, is establishing a standard, really making it clear what the culture is and how players and coaches alike, all the way up to ownership, are going to be able to contribute in such a way that they're contributing to that direction. And so that's what he brings," Perry said.
After hiring a rookie coach in Mayo and not getting the desired results, it was clear the Patriots wanted his replacement to have previous head coaching experience. Vrabel satisfies that after his six seasons leading the Tennessee Titans from 2018 through 2023. The Titans made three playoff appearances during Vrabel's tenure.
"(Vrabel is) a known commodity," Perry said. "Now, Ben Johnson might go somewhere else and kill it. He might be the next Kevin O'Connell, Sean McVay, Matt LaFleur. But the uncertainty of having another rookie head coach after Jerod Mayo was not something that they were interested in."
Vrabel will have so many challenges early in his Patriots tenure, but his institutional knowledge of the franchise from his time as a player, plus the experience he gained in Tennessee, should make him well-prepared to address all that ails this franchise and start turning things around in a positive direction.
Watch the full episode below: