The Mike Vrabel era is about to begin in Foxborough.

While New England’s decision to hire the three-time Super Bowl champion as their next head coach doesn’t necessarily come as much of a surprise, it still stands as a seismic shift for a franchise that was rudderless for most of the 2024 season. 

Given Vrabel’s ties to New England, and his resume as head coach of the Tennessee Titans, several of his former teammates in New England — along with many other coaches and former players across the NFL — have commented on Vrabel’s decision. 

Here’s a summary of some of the top reactions across the NFL following Vrabel’s hiring. 

This post will be updated regularly.

Tedy Bruschi 

Vrabel’s longtime teammate in New England spoke highly of Vrabel’s fit in New England on Saturday — stressing that the ex-Titans coach’s stern demeanor and commanding presence would be needed to fix a “mess” that has piled up with the Patriots in the post-Tom Brady era. 

On Sunday, Bruschi echoed a similar sentiment on ESPN NFL Countdown about how Vrabel will be able to right the ship in Foxborough. 

“It’s been bad for the last two years with the New England Patriots organization,” Bruschi said. “When they hired Jerod [Mayo], at the press conference, a big word that was used was ‘collaboration.’ Everybody’s input and all that stuff; well, I don’t know how much it is that any more. And I think that’s a good thing.  

“Because Vrabel isn’t going to joke around, Vrabel is going to tighten the screws. In my opinion, there are some people in the front office that need to be told, ‘You don’t know what you’re doing and you need to take a step back.’

Beyond Vrabel’s ability to fix New England’s issues with execution and discipline on the field, Bruschi believes that Vrabel will also be able to sort out what has been a dysfunctional power structure as of late in Foxborough. 

“There is going to be a change,” Bruschi said. “I’m a little bit surprised that this happened because there are some people upstairs in the organization that want to be heard. And sometimes they’re going to have to take a bite of ‘Humble Pie’ and understand ‘your opinion doesn’t matter on this one’ because there are people in the building that know more.”

Rex Ryan

In a far-from-surprising soundbite, former Jets coach Rex Ryan offered up a challenge toward Vrabel after finding out that he’s joining New England. 

“Hopefully I get to kick this guy’s ass twice a year,” Ryan said on ESPN before adding that he was “just kidding.”

While Ryan hasn’t exactly been the biggest fan of the Patriots after coaching against them with the Ravens (defensive coordinator), Jets, and Bills, his comments also allude to the fact that Ryan interviewed for the Jets’ head-coaching vacancy last week — and could possibly be coaching against Vrabel and Co. once again in 2025 and beyond. 

Julian Edelman

Even though Edelman and Vrabel did not cross paths as players in New England, the former wideout has heard plenty of stories of Vrabel’s knack for pushing buttons during his days as a leader on New England’s defense.

“Just wanna be like Mike. Welcome back Coach. @CoachVrabel50 🙏” Edelman posted on X over a video from his “Games With Names” podcast with ex-Patriots executive Scott Pioli. 

“Vrabel more than anybody pushed across the line where it got uncomfortable sometimes like, ‘Uhh, Vrabes might have gone too far that time.’ He did with with Bill sometimes like, ‘Oh, you might have not wanted to go there,’” Pioli said in the clip. “I remember early on, Bill used to talk about the linebackers and then show Giants film.

“And I remember one time Vrabel came out to practice dressed in Giants gear. He was like, ‘Are you f’ing happy now?’ Vrabel’s one of a kind that way.”

Matt Ryan

The former Boston College and Falcons quarterback joined the growing chorus of football voices who expected to see Vrabel take the helm in Foxborough. 

“I’m not surprised. …. I think it was the worst kept secret the last couple of weeks, as soon as Jerod Mayo was fired about an hour after that last ballgame,” Ryan said of Vrabel’s hiring on CBS.  “So organizationally, I think he fits, right, “The Patriot Way”, a guy that has been there for a long time — has a good relationship with the ownership and the Kraft family. So from that standpoint, I think it makes a lot of sense. I also really like providing some like, long term stability around Drake Maye. 

“Whether that’s an offensive coach, we’ve been talking about it in Chicago. Who are you going to find with this young quarterback? I think more important than anything is providing stability at that top spot around him. So I’m not surprised by the hire.”

Even though Ryan thinks Vrabel is a natural fit in New England, he also raised questions about whether or not the presumed frontrunner for the offensive-coordinator gig in Josh McDaniels is the right coach to get the most out of Maye. 

“I’m interested about the staff,” Ryan added. “You mentioned Josh McDaniels coming back. That is the one area — I’m not sure if that’s the perfect fit with the young quarterback. Josh was excellent with Tom [Brady] in New England, but they asked a lot of Tom Brady at the line of scrimmage, getting them in and out of things. 

“I think it needs to be a revamped style of that system. And Drake Maye is very different player than than some of the quarterbacks, in my opinion, that Josh has worked with.”

Dan Graziano 

While Vrabel’s resume speaks for itself when it comes to his fit in New England, ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano stressed that several individuals across the league wished that the Patriots did a more thorough coaching search. 

“A lot of people I talk to have rolled their eyes a bit at the hire,” Graziano wrote. “The Patriots had Belichick for 24 years, let him go, did no search at all before hiring Mayo, fired Mayo after one season and then rushed their search before hiring Vrabel. Vrabel is an outstanding coach and likely the right hire, but it seems the Patriots could have benefited from seeking a wider range of perspectives before jumping at the obvious candidate.”

 

Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.

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