The New England Patriots have hired Mike Vrabel as the franchise’s new head coach, per multiple reports. The team confirmed Vrabel’s hiring Sunday, announcing Vrabel as the 16th head coach in franchise history.
Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, “Mike Vrabel and the Patriots reached a multi-year agreement to make him New England’s next head coach, per sources. Vrabel now is the seventh individual to become the head coach for a franchise he once helped win a Super Bowl as a player, joining Jerod Mayo, Bart Starr, Forrest Gregg, Art Shell, Jeff Saturday and Jason Garrett.”
Vrabel, 49, played for the franchise under Bill Belichick for eight years and won three Super Bowls. He was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2023, saying at the time: “This is a special place with great leadership, great fans, great direction and great coaching. … It’s not like this everywhere. We held each other accountable, because there was trust, there was an understanding, a respect that you could say things that needed to be said to each other. Every day that’s what I’m trying to recreate wherever I coach. I don’t know if we’ll get it, but every day I’m going to try because nothing was more important than the team.”
Vrabel was previously head coach of the Tennessee Titans, where he posted a 54-45 career record with the Titans, and 2-3 mark in the playoffs (including a trip to the AFC Championship Game in 2019). Vrabel was fired following the 2023 season; last year, he worked with the Cleveland Browns as a coaching and personnel consultant.
Vrabel replaces Jerod Mayo, who was fired Jan. 5 after posting a 4-13 record in his one season as Patriots coach; he will be formally introduced as New England’s new head coach during a noon ET news conference Monday at Gillette Stadium.
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