PATRIOTS HEAD COACH MIKE VRABEL

PRESS CONFERENCE
January 29, 2026

Q: Drake [Maye] was officially listed with a shoulder injury on the report yesterday. Can you share if that was something he was dealing with previously that he aggravated?

MV: No, because then he would have been listed on the injury report before then.

Q: What is your level of concern on that?

MV: Not much, I try not to have a whole lot of concern. I just want to try to prepare the football team, make sure that everybody's ready, that we all have a plan, not to surprise anybody and make sure that our guys are focusing on the first and second down plan. We've tried to map out the week here, week and a half, and not look at the end of it, but focus on what we can do today. Try to learn our opponent and be ready for first and second down.

Q: Not specific to Drake, but when it comes to a player who's injured at this time of year, what's the balance like trying to figure out if you want to put him on IR and kind of gain the roster spot, or if you wanted to clear him out for this game?

MV: I think that that would happen much, much later on in the process. You use your elevations and then whatever else we would need when we got to that point. I think that that's something that would happen when we're in California.

Q: Mike, are logistics ever a part of this week? When you were playing, how much did you have people take care of tickets, rooms for family and things like that? Do you take care of that now for the players?

MV: Well, again, we've gotten most of that finished. I think that the staff has done a fantastic job to help facilitate all that and those needs. And again, we want our players and our families that are important to us to enjoy this process. We have a responsibility to prepare for the game and for this opportunity. So again, our staff has done a fantastic job. I'm confident that they'll help our players if things come up throughout the week.

Q: Do you expect Robert Spillane to be up there today?

MV: I don't anticipate Spillane being out there.

Q: Mike, are you hoarse or sick or anything like that?

MV: I mean, I just yell a lot. It's 21 weeks into the season. I got excited in a meeting, I guess, this morning with the players. But this is my coaching voice.

Q: Mike, any thoughts about Bill Belichick not getting into the Hall of Fame on his first ballot?

MV: I'm sure Bill will get in. Again, that's something that's well out of my control, and I know that the time here with Bill was eight great years, and the teammates and everybody else that we had. I'm sure that Bill will get into Canton.

Q: Does prepping a team for a playoff run and a Super Bowl give you an appreciation for what Coach Belichick did here when you were? And does it inform you on how to go about this process?

MV: I think the record speaks for itself. My experiences don't give me any less or any greater affinity for Bill as a coach and somebody I played for.

Q: Mike, is there something you learned about prepping for the Super Bowl as a player that you definitely want to carry over to this week?

MV: Just trying to remain focused on each day and not look too far ahead is something that we've tried to focus on, just getting started today. Trying to break the days up, and how much they are working and when they're off. The time that they're going to have, but also focused on trying to keep the normal schedule as close to possible as we can make it.

Q: Mike, I saw that you made an effort when you first got here to sort of entrench yourself with the scouting staff, and I wondered, given how many rookies have participated in a big way and how many free agents have participated in a big way on the field in setting your culture and so on, how much did that communication and that relationship building help you?

MV: Yeah, that's nothing different than anything that I've done as a head coach, as a position coach or working my way into the building is, whether you're the head coach, then you work with the general manager and the personnel department. I just think that me being around is important, having conversations with those guys. When I was a position coach, to be able to link up with the scouts, talking about post-draft or communicating with them. This is an open line of communication with our coaches and our personnel department.

Q: Coach, how do you keep yourself so grounded in a big game like this? Are you looking to guidance from anybody that you –

MV: Anybody that I've come across that has had success in this game, and just focused on today really. I think more of that will probably hit once we get out there and get a little closer to the game. But we've gotten into a pretty good cadence here as far as being here and working, and that's what I'm focused on.

Q: Mike, what, if anything, are you guys doing differently given Drake's injury, either with preparation or with rehab?

MV: I think we're going to operate as we normally would here on a Wednesday. Even though it's Thursday, this is a Wednesday for us, and that's kind of how we'll approach it.

Q: Drake is going to be the second youngest quarterback to start in a Super Bowl. What have you seen from him in just his maturity level and ability to handle the big moment?

MV: I think it's grown. I think just as we've gone through this entire year in this program, and the more that he's been out there and the games have kind of built up on us that, really, we've done a nice job in those situations. I think he's improved in them, and he's a big part of why we're here, obviously.

Q: Mike, John Streicher is not a guy who gets a ton of publicity. What has Stretch [John Streicher] helped bring to you and your staff this season?

MV: Well, not only the staff, but the players. He makes great connections with these guys, and they know that they can trust him with things that they may need to talk about. Same as with the staff, obviously. Keeps me in line, keeps me focused and keeps me constantly thinking about things that we should do. So again, it's no secret how much he means to me, and he's a large part of the reason of why we're here.

Q: Mike, I know a lot of this is personnel, but looking at the Rams and how they were one of the few teams to crack Seattle for a lot of X-plays in their meetings, is there anything structurally, schematically, you feel like you might be able to steal for the Super Bowl?

MV: I think we'll try to look at every single thing that we can that could potentially help us, but that'll be critical. Our ability to create some of those X-plays that maybe we haven't had as many of and we've had in previous games. Whether we hand it off, we're going to need to gain some chunks, and if we throw it, we're going to need to do the same.

Q: Mike, this being your first year with Drake, what have you learned along the road here – that third down play the other day, the Baltimore drives – about his competitive spirit, and his fire and passionate to win?

MV: I think that comes out in numerous ways, and people see different things. You could be a yeller, a screamer. You could paint your face black and scream and yell with eye black and be a competitor, or you could be a little bit more laid back and still compete when the ball is snapped. And I'd say that's probably what Drake is. Then you guys get a little bit of glimpse into how he is when he's mic'd up.

Q: Mike, the half time of the Super Bowl is longer. How do you get your players prepared and focused for them to come back out strong to win the second half?

MV: Again, that'll be something we'll focus on next week. I just don't want to put a bunch of stuff and focus on a bunch of stuff today. But I think that that's certainly something that we'll address, and there's a plan for that next week. Just don't want to say, "OK, this is everything in one day, in one meeting, that we want to focus on." So, more or less, just focus on the first and second down game plan today, and then we'll continue to build. Then next week will give us a great opportunity to have that and have it planned out. Just like the pregame is different, it's a little longer when we go out, when we come back in, the length of time that we have to be in the locker room. So, those are things that we'll obviously have to manage. The game will require a lot of mental and physical stamina. It's a long game. It's longer than normal, just with the TV timeouts and everything else that goes on with the game. So, those are all things that we'll address next week.

Q: In terms of Drake scrambling, I'm curious what you've seen from Drake scrambling in terms of his confidence growing throughout the season and him stepping up specifically in that last play to get the first down.

MV: Yeah, it's something that we'll have to continue to use, and I think his judgment has been good. When you can move the ball down the field and throw it, obviously that's what we would like. And then when it's not there, and it gives us an advantageous look for him to be able to extend plays – we talked about remaining a passer or a thrower, but then there's other times where he's decisive and he's able to go north and south.

Q: Mike, you've received a lot of contributions from the first-year players. How big is that for this team, and in your experience, how rare is it to have that many rookies contributing?

MV: I think every year is different, Mark [Daniels.] I think just this year is probably a little different, just with the amount of turnover, and certainly, we have had our rookies help us. There's still things that they're seeing and happening for the first time because they haven't been out there that much. So, we'll just have to try to continue to prepare them the best that we can, and then the other guys that we've brought in that were first-year players here that were new to our team, some of those guys are veteran guys.

Q: Mike Smith was one of the few guys you hired that you didn't have direct personal working experience with. What was the process like that led up to his hiring?

MV: I've known Smitty for a while. Just different people. And again, he's close with some friends of mine and has worked with some great organizations. He's been with Kansas City, Green Bay and Minnesota. He has a passion for coaching that position. Just like any other position, you try to get as many candidates as you feel that you'd like to interview and talk to, and then try to figure out what the best fit is.

Q: Mike, how is Terrell [Williams] doing?

MV: He's doing good, thank you. He's excited about traveling with us, I appreciate you asking. Doing well, so we're excited about having him.

Q: I had asked you in previous weeks just how you felt personally heading into any given week, AFC Championship, Wild Card weekend, but heading into the Super Bowl, just how are you feeling as a first-year head coach here and just in general?

MV: The same way I answer when people ask me how I feel – I feel as good as the players do. That's what a coach does. He feels as good as the players do.

Q: Mike, have you been to a Super Bowl since the last one that you appeared in as a player?

MV: Well, I did go the one time, just so Stretch could get his award.

Q: Are you excited just to get back in the mix?

MV: Excited to be in the Super Bowl? Yes, I'm clearly excited to be in the Super Bowl.

Q: Mike, you were a first-year defensive coordinator, eight, nine years ago, calling plays. How much did that experience allow you to sort of translate to Zak [Kuhr] and what he's doing in his first year as the –

MV: Again, the defensive staff does a really good job of collaborating, and there's a really good flow and a connection in there about bringing everybody's ideas together, but also helping Zak when we go in and we talk about the game plan, the things that we want to do and the ideas. And I think the biggest thing for a position coach is, as I start to understand, is what can their players handle? What are they good at? And we have a good feel of that by now, obviously. But it's also saying, "Hey, this may be too much." Or, "Hey, this guy does this really well, let's try to focus on that." So, the guys all are comfortable sharing those ideas, and I think that that's been real positive and has helped Zak. But Zak's done a fantastic job, I've said that numerous times, and I know that he's going to be prepared to help us win.

Q: Mike, there are some parallels between the 2001 team and this one. Do you see commonality between the two groups in any way, shape, or form?

MV: Like I said to Mark, every year is different. That team, we lost to the Rams to go 5-5 and won nine games in a row after Thanksgiving. There was no week off between the AFC Championship game and the Super Bowl. Every year is different. So, I'm just focused on what we're doing now.

Q: Mike, different players respond to different forms of motivation. I wonder if you use your position coaches, or if they come to you and kind of explain to you how their guys are operating and what's the best way that their individual guys respond to certain forms of motivation.

MV: Again, I've been through this. I don't know that players need to be motivated, I think they're motivated. I hope it's to win a championship, a Super Bowl. If it's money, that's fine, it's professional football. Date the cheerleader, whatever motivates them. I mean, as high school players – whatever motivates you. We're trying to inspire them, and give them confidence and trust in doing their job. So, I used to think I needed to motivate them; I try to inspire them to do their job with confidence.

Q: Mike, speaking of motivating players, we noticed that over the past week, "The Warriors," that movie, was used maybe to form some sort of identity in the locker room. I was just wondering, aside from that being a great film, why that movie?

MV: Because when we started this thing in Miami, I ran out of WWF clips to show them about the Road Warriors. So, the next thing I could think of was that movie clip, and that's what we went with, and it's amazing what sticks. I didn't think at the time that it would have stuck, but here we are at the end of January, and it's still sticking.

Q: Is Mack [Hollins] going everywhere with those bottles now, just running around?

MV: I mean, the first time, I think Frank [Piraino] emptied two soy sauces and a Red Hot bottle, and was walking around the building. And I'm like, "What are you doing?" And he's like, "Warriors." And I was like, "It's a soy sauce – it's like a soy sauce bottle and a Red Hot." And then Mack went out and found the – he said he studied long and hard. So, I'm sure there's bottles around here.

Q: Mike, you said that you noticed a difference in Christian Gonzalez's towards the end of the season. How has that shown up on the field?

MV: There's just a presence, I feel like. And again, not that there was anything was wrong. I just felt him. I just felt when he blitzed, when he covered, when he – maybe it was just me, but I've got a pretty good seat for some of these games. And so, I just felt him start to continue to impact at a greater level. You heard him, you saw him and obviously his play. So, that's no secret that we'll need him to play well, as well as the rest of our other good players.

Q: When you're trying to forge a team's identity, whether it's showing WWE clips you mentioned or the movie "Warriors," how much of it is kind of you trying to put it out there? How much is kind of organic in the moments that happen that make the team a team?

MV: Probably just organic. I mean, I think maybe it was – maybe it didn't start in Miami, maybe it was in that three-week stretch when we went on the road three weeks in a row and that's – just kind of figured I'd give it a try and see what happened.