PATRIOTS HEAD COACH MIKE VRABEL
PRESS CONFERENCE
January 27, 2026
MV: Real quick here before – I just want to thank a lot of people here for helping us get here. Obviously, Robert [Kraft] and Jonathan [Kraft] for the support that they showed us from the time that I got here through free agency, and we're excited to finish up this chapter here, move into a new building and just have a lot of excitement there. As we get back, just the Foxboro Fire Department, these guys all jacked up on top of their trucks and the excitement there. I mean, just look at our parking attendants. I mean, we came back, there's a bunch of snow, we're worried about starting our cars and getting everything cleaned off, and our cars are cleaned off, and I can't thank those people enough for what they do. Our staff to get our coaches prepared, our coaches to get our players prepared, our training room, just everybody involved with this thing. But obviously the players, I thank them, and I know that they're excited to get us this next game and just the work that they're going to put in here this week. I think we have a good plan for them. We're excited about it, and it'll be a huge challenge and it'll be a huge test.
Q: I know on the radio you were asked about Drake [Maye] and his shoulder injury today. I'm just curious, is that kind of something that's been blown a little bit out of proportion on social media?
MV: Probably, and here's what I'm going to start saying about this radio show. This is like the Miranda rights. There's nothing that I can say on there that can be used against me when I come back in here. So, going forward, that's what we're going to have to say. Those are like free interviews. I'm in there, we're doing breakfast shots. But I think that everybody, including Drake, is not 100% at this part of the year. We'll do everything that we can to help our players be prepared and get ready for this game.
Q: Mike, what's your week like with the players? What do you want from them, and what's the experience like for this?
MV: Yeah, we have to get healthy. We have to get healthy. Staying the day, I think, helped us get a little bit of rest so we didn't get back late or try to sleep on a plane. We'll get moving around tomorrow. They'll lift, run and work out tomorrow, do some light football drills. The players will run those. I'll run the conditioning, things like that. And then we'll practice Thursday and Friday. Give them an opportunity to take a day off on Saturday, and then travel Sunday. Get some movement in, probably light movement back in the weight room before we travel. And then Monday will be like a bonus day, which we've used for coming off of a bye week to kind of do some drills and just some movement. And then Tuesday off. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, just try to keep it like a normal week.
Q: Mike, I don't know if you've actually even been asked this directly, but did Drake hurt his shoulder on Sunday?
MV: No, I wouldn't say that anybody hurt anything. Again, this is a sport where there's going to be things that come up, but I don't think that there's a – we'll talk about whatever status each player has for the game once we're required to. We understand that. But we were able to function offensively, throw the football, run the football. So, that's kind of where everybody's at.
Q: When does the game plan get installed and presented to the players?
MV: I mean, I think that that's something that happens this week. That's something that happens next week. I think there's a lot of preparation. I think you want to try to avoid doing too much too early. And then also, how do you keep their attention next week, and focused and locked in? So, I think we have a good balance. Coaches have been a good resource. Josh [McDaniels] has been a good resource. Obviously, he's coached in these with the extended break. So, there's just trying to find that sweet spot of doing enough here, but then also still having stuff out there that will keep them engaged.
Q: Mike, how would you describe what Milton Williams has brought?
MV: Well, again, there's a consistency there. He's a tireless worker. He worked hard. He was here in the offseason. I think that makes a difference. And then, obviously, just the disruption. I know everybody that rushes the passer, they strive for sacks, and certainly our ability to affect the quarterback goes well beyond the sack numbers. You can get a sack. I mean, Gonzo [Christian Gonzalez] got a sack. The quarterback ran out of bounds. And so, if you just look at that, it can be somewhat misleading. But he certainly has brought some disruption. We talked about that after the Houston game. We talked about that a few days ago here about the disruption. And I think he has improved some of his technique in the run game and things that we've talked about. He's consciously tried to work on that, and I appreciate that.
Q: With him, when he signs a big contract, I'm sure there's part of your research that says we want to make sure that whenever we give money like that to someone, that they don't change as a result of that money. What gave you the assurance that he was going to?
MV: Well, having done a lot of work with him coming out and just knowing who he is as a person, but all his family. I think his parents have been fantastic raising him and his sisters. When you have good bones, you can survive a lot. So, for a young player to come into a lot of money like that, it is important that they remain grounded, they remain hungry and want to continue to work. And I know that his parents and his family have a lot to do with that.
Q: Have you envisioned what a Super Bowl win might feel like?
MV: Nah, I haven't thought about that one time.
Q: Mike, Drake was very efficient passing the ball in the regular season. Over the last three weeks, how much is his passing output a reflection of the defenses and the pass rushes you guys have faced?
MV: Yeah, I think that that's all a combination. I think it all goes into it. Just the defenses in general, not just the pass rush. And, again, a lot of that stuff is, we'll have to be better. We'll have to be better. We'll have to play one of our best games, if not our best game, against Seattle to stay balanced, to run the football, to use all our complementary passing game and not just turn it into a drop-back passing game. That's a tough way to live in this league, especially with the players that they have, the games – they're probably the best in the National Football League at running games up front and creating pressure. They work very well together. It's something that we show our guys every week. So, I know that that'll be a big key in this game, is being able to block those guys up front. A lot of guys with ball production on the back end. I mean, Ernest Jones [IV] has five interceptions. Cobee Bryant's got four. A lot of guys get their hands on the football.
Q: Mike, you've had a lot of success here as a player. You were on almost a perfect season. And then there was another generation after that, another successful run with the same head coach. Can you talk about the dynamic – not so much that dynamic between the head coach and the players – but the way you do things seems to be a little different, and I'm wondering where that came from. I know you've talked about, you've taken from other coaches over the years, but is there one particular coach that has sort of led you to where you are now and seems to be the one-on-one relationships you have with players?
MV: I mean, I think you try to have a core belief in what you do. And I think you try to be consistent with that. But I think you also have to be authentic. I think they have to see you be upset, be disappointed, be sad, share personal experiences. Again, I talk about how much time we spend together. So, I think it just goes all the way back to when – they don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. So, whatever we can do to try to help them off the field, grow as men – there's a lot of great guys in there that are husbands and fathers, and then they're also great players. So, we just try to build the player the best that we can.
Q: Did that come from anywhere, though?
MV: I mean, I've been a lot of places. I played at Ohio State. I got drafted by the Steelers, a great organization. Came here for eight years. Went to Kansas City. Had great coaches there. Worked at Ohio State. Worked for Bill O'Brien. Worked in Tennessee. So, it's like if you just pay attention and focus, I didn't live my whole life in one place. So, that's all I can tell you. I just try to be me, and sometimes that's good enough, sometimes it's not. But I just try to learn from every person, every great coach that I've been around, and try to make it my own style.
Q: Mike, when you start to prepare for this game and you look at Sam Darnold, he's had a few different stops around the league. How deep does your staff look in terms of his film? Is it about this year?
MV: I mean, we haven't watched every game that they've played this year yet. So, there will be things that we'll try to watch and see. I mean, again, it'll be important that we're sound. He's been very efficient. Again, everybody's journey is different, so you give him a lot of credit for the places that he's been, and how he's learned and grown. He's certainly making the most of his opportunity now.
Q: Mike, you mentioned a little bit earlier you felt like you guys had a good plan in place. Is the plan for the game already sort of fully baked by you guys?
MV: No. I meant plan as far as schedule, logistics. Trying to get all that stuff out of the way. We'll work hard today and tomorrow to continue to work on that and what we present to the players, and then that'll continue to build as we move on.
Q: Mike, I know you mentioned them this morning, but respecting your Miranda rights, just an overall thought on Seattle, just how good of an opponent are they?
MV: Oh, I mean, they're first in the league in scoring on defense, third on offense. Good mix of veterans and youth. So, any time that you have defenses that are good at keeping points down, it makes it real difficult. They disguise well, they blitz and sometimes they get pressure with rushing four. I mean, they've got four or five guys with six or seven sacks each. Offensively, it's a mix of some of the West Coast stuff, some play action, but then just the scheme and Darnold's ability to operate and function, and not many people slow down JSN [Jaxon Smith-Njigba.] Kenneth Walker [III], the speed, he can hit the edge, he's not afraid to cut up. They've got an excellent special teams unit. That special teams has won them some football games, that broke it open against Atlanta, 6-6, I think it's tied at halftime. He takes the opening half kickoff or the second half kickoff to the house. Defense gets a couple turnovers, and then it's a blowout. So, we're going to have to be really good in all phases, but this is an excellent football team.
Q: Mike, how would you grade your defense, just the progression of the defense, especially through the first three rounds of the playoffs? It seems they've really come up strong.
MV: Yeah, I'm not much into the grades. It's good enough for us to win. I mean, I think I always love the draft grades and the O-line, D-line grades. I'm not much into grades. I'm just into winning.
Q: Has there been a progression, though, with the defense?
MV: We'll have to play better than we played last week for us to win. So, as guys have come back and, again, situationally and whatever is presented to us, whether that's a short yardage stop or red zone stop, those things will have to continue to improve. The red zone has been better in the playoffs, but, again, the only thing that's going to matter is what happens next Sunday.
Q: We can't ask you about every individual performer's performance in the game, but a lot was made of Will Campbell's performance the first two weeks of the playoffs. How do you feel like he held up on Sunday?
MV: I thought he played better against a really good rusher, and we'll need to keep improving and I'm excited that he has another week to do.
Q: How would you define Mike Macdonald's defensive scheme?
MV: I would say multiple. It has the ability to play post-safety zone, play some split-safety concepts, then also pressure you. So, I think that they've got everything in the bag. It just depends on what they want to use and do. And again, it looks like they don't have many busts. There's not guys running free a lot. They have the ability to play man-to-man, kind of move the safeties around, again, however they want down in the box. They've got a lot of good chess pieces that they utilize.
Q: Is it Jesse Minter-esque? Minter obviously came from that same defense.
MV: Yeah, again, he's got his own flavor, but there's a background, and there's only so many places you can put 11 guys. But they work really well together from an adjustment when teams motion, shift and do all those things. You don't see a whole lot of panic.
Q: Coach, Matt Evans, your assistant director of college scouting, any interactions with him, just what's it been like working with him? And if not, just what the college scouting department's doing right now with the Senior Bowl, just balancing that.
MV: Yeah, they're in Mobile. Everybody has a job to do. I got to know Matt over the course of last year in our first draft together. I appreciate his input and his knowledge, and working with our coaches, but I appreciated everybody in that staff and that department. So, they went to Dallas and then they go on to Mobile, and they have their responsibility that they have to focus on, which is player evaluation for the draft. So, we'll need everybody. They'll have to get us caught up whenever we're finished.
Q: Coach, going back to Milton Williams, saw him in a tush push on Sunday. How long have you guys had that in the bag, and based on the execution, would you use it again?
MV: Well, we'll use anything that can help us. We gained just enough. And again, we practice things throughout the year and try to have it ready to go. But yeah, anybody that can help us out there, [Khyiris] Tonga, Milt [Milton Williams], anybody that we could use. So, hopefully we can continue to pick up some short yardage situations with how critical that is, especially in the red zone.
Q: Mike, how have you kept your personal energy up? You spend a lot on relationships with your family, the players, the media. You engage. You spend a lot of time. How have you kept up – you're 20 games into the season, 23 when you add preseason?
MV: I mean, I think you just kind of get caught up in this thing, and you do what's necessary. I think you kind of just do what you feel like you need to do when you need to do it. Sometimes you've got to trick yourself, sometimes you've got to put on a happy face, and sometimes you've got to close the door for 15 minutes and not be happy, and then come out and be Johnny Carson. But the more that I'm around the players, I would say the easier that it gets. They have responded to us. They've done everything we've asked them to do. So, I think being around the players helps. And again, we've got a lot more time to spend together this week and then the next week in San Francisco.
