New England Patriots hire former player Mike Vrabel as head coach
The New England Patriots have hired former player Mike Vrabel as their new head coach.
By Ben Morse, CNN
(CNN) — The New England Patriots have hired their former player, Mike Vrabel, as their new head coach, the team announced on Sunday.
Vrabel replaces Jerod Mayo – another former Patriots player – who was fired shortly after the Patriots’ Week 18 game last Sunday.
He becomes the 16th head coach in the franchise’s history and just the seventh person to become the head coach for a franchise they once helped win a Super Bowl as a player, joining Mayo, Bart Starr, Forrest Gregg, Art Shell, Jeff Saturday and Jason Garrett, per ESPN.
The 49-year-old has been out of work since being fired as the Tennessee Titans’ head coach in 2023. During his time in Nashville, Vrabel led the Titans to a 54-45 record between 2018 and 2023, and the playoffs three times. He also won the Coach of the Year accolade in 2021.
In a turn of fate, Vrabel’s Titans eliminated the Patriots from the playoffs in 2019, marking the end of Tom Brady’s era with the team.
The former linebacker played for New England for eight years between 2001 and 2008, winning the Super Bowl three times and being named a First-Team All-Pro.
Vrabel was named into the organization’s Ring of Honor in 2023 and now returns to Massachusetts to help turn around a team which finished with a 4-13 record last season.
Despite the lowly record, there are still signs of hope for New England though, in particular in the form of quarterback Drake Maye who shone in his rookie season and cornerback Christian Gonzalez.
Vrabel is the first coach since 1950 to directly succeed another coach where both had played together in the NFL as teammates since Gregg took over for Starr as Green Bay Packers head coach in 1984, per NFL Research.
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