PATRIOTS HEAD COACH MIKE VRABEL

PRESS CONFERENCE
June 11, 2026

Q: Since this is the last day, I don't know if it is the last day for the players, but there is going to be, obviously, a gap of time until training camp. Do you have a message for them?

MV: Yeah, I always have messages for our players. I think I told you this last year and in the past that those weeks from the end of their time here until training camp are some of the most important days of the entire season. That is just what it is. I think that it's human nature to go harder and to compete. When you're in a schedule and you're next to guys that you are going to be competing with for spots or play time and everything that goes along with the NFL and the process, you work a little harder. They have to somehow either be around guys or other players that are doing the same thing and getting ready for the same thing they're getting ready for, or they have to put themselves in the mindset of, "Hey, what was it like on Thursday when I lifted? The guy to my position was lifting and he was running or training." That's what they have to try to do. That's the balance that we wage. Some of the guys that have come from college, they get a week off, and then they're in their summer conditioning program on campus. This is just a little different, and we understand that. Those are important days that they maintain and be ready to go so that we can be ready to go in training camp.

Q: Has it gone how you wanted it to go so far, Mike?

MV: When you don't have a lot of expectations, you can't be disappointed. I just felt like there hasn't been much complacency. I think the guys have worked. We've had great leadership, added some good leaders and good pieces, and we are continuing to build and hopefully prepare for a long journey.

Q: Mike, Doug [Kyed] asked you yesterday a few things about the interior. I am curious if you feel a similar way with the edge, with Gabe [Jacas] and his situation, and Harold [Landry III] rehabbing?

MV: No, that's a good group. I'm excited about adding Dre'[Mont Jones], the development of [Elijah] Ponder and [Bradyn] Swinson. We added [Jesse] Luketa and some young guys. Again, we'll continue to try to look at every position and make it stronger, but that group has done a nice job. Again, we'll continue to look at it, but we'll have to see where we are at numbers-wise, and when we get into training camp just how many guys you can rep, based on the practices.

Q: On Tuesday, we did not see Christian [Gonzalez] in the competitive period of 11-on-11s. Was that his decision or the team's?

MV: I think that's just something that Christian and I talked about, and making sure that the most important thing is that we're on the same page, which we are.

Q: Mike, this might be digging into something that's not there, but Swinson was leading the stretch line yesterday.

MV: That's leading. Yeah, I would say that's reading into whatever. He's going to be a team captain, Mike [Reiss]?

Q: How does it happen? How does that happen? Does he just go up there?

MV: I don't know. Have you ever seen dogs go at one bowl and there's four or five dogs, like whoever gets there first? I don't really know. There are things that I try to concern myself with and things that I do not. Who's standing out front when we are doing the toe touches isn't one of them. It always just works itself out.

Q: What about Swinson just this year? Has he had a good offseason?

MV: He came back in shape, came back ready to go. I think he realized what professional football is after camp, where he was and what his role was, and he realized that maybe he wants a different role. I think he's been conscientious with special teams. Sometimes you get these defensive ends that come in from college that are outside linebackers, and they haven't done a lot of special teams. So, that's a critical element. We need those players to be good on special teams for us. I think he improved over the course of last season, and certainly has taken to that early on in the spring and what we have been able to do. So, I'm excited about what he'll be able to do and excited to see him in training camp.

Q: What is your biggest takeaway last year from spending a year working with Christian Barmore, as a player and a person, and how do you feel about him moving forward?

MV: A very disruptive player, a player that cares a lot. He's a player that we have to manage. He's able to get and understand what to do without practicing every single day. I just want to see him finish. So does he, but some of those plays that he had in the backfield around the quarterback, and instead of being disruptive, being able to finish those, because he did that a lot. I try to talk to him about not being frustrated, that those plays impact the game. It may not show up on a statistical category. But I think his attitude has been great. I enjoy working with him, I do. I'm looking for more and more of the same next year.

Q: What does it mean for a quarterback to be a step ahead of the defense, and what are some of the tools or anticipatory elements that can allow him to have that advantage?

MV: You always want to have the pen last. They run this, we're going to do this. Sometimes that happens, sometimes it doesn't. Defenses are going to try to disguise and try to give you different looks, presentations that are going to force you to have every rule tested and protection. And in the run game, making sure the guys are blocked, who you are IDing and who we're going to. There are a lot of different tools that quarterbacks can use. You can go on the ball, you can get cadence, different formations, motions and things.

Q: Mike, going back to Barmore, Eliot [Wolf] mentioned a dry spell he had mid-season that he rebounded from late. How do you develop more consistency with a guy who, like you said, practice-wise you have to manage and his reps are not as consistent?

MV: I mean, I'm focused on this year. I'm focused on how he's been able to learn some of these techniques that we've been teaching and embracing some of that. Whatever we did last year is not going to really help us, and I'm focused on where we're at. Again, he's very coachable, and that's what I appreciate in any veteran player, that when the new staff comes in, that they're coachable. There are a lot of different ways to do things. We try to give each player a menu of things to focus on, and then figure out what works and what fits best for him. Looking at him and Milton [Williams], different players, different play styles, different skill sets. So, you have to just address each player specifically when you're trying to coach them on some technique.

Q: With Milton, I was just curious, you kind of mentioned how he and Barmore have different skill sets, but how do they bounce off one another and how are they able to help each other?

MV: They're close. They have a good relationship. I think they work well together inside. I think that they communicate well. Hopefully they can help us. They play hard. One thing, Milt [Milton Williams] made a lot of plays down the field, and that's the thing I try to tell the defense is, it's not natural to chase the ball nine times and not have the opportunity to make a play, and then on the 10th one, a receiver breaks free or somebody breaks loose and you're there. So, I appreciate that and I value that. But I think they work well together as far as communication in games.

Q: What do you think motivates A.J. [Brown]? You've known him a long time.

MV: I'm not going to speak for A.J. I think he'll tell you what motivates him, and I think that'd be the best thing. We just try to inspire them and give them confidence to do their job, each and every one of them. However they are motivated, I hope on the top of the list, that — it may not be the top, but that it's winning. But then there are always things that motivate different players, and when you give an opportunity to talk to A.J., I'm sure he'll be able to express those for himself.

Q: Drake [Maye] mentioned yesterday that he's a guy who has obviously won and won a Super Bowl before. Have you guys talked about another one driving him as he enters this chapter of his career?

MV: No. I mean, I don't think there's been conversations that have talked about that. [We've] talked about knowing what to do and understanding how we do things. We joke sometimes, like, "I forgot we do those," or, "I forgot that this is how we did it with you," or just kind of — every program's a little different.

Q: Now that you have been through a program here, ending it, how's this facility?

MV: Fantastic. I think that I appreciate the support and the commitment that Robert [Kraft] and Jonathan [Kraft] have made, specifically as it relates to this building. Jonathan and Stretch [John Streicher] put a lot of work in to get this thing right, to plan every room and plan every area with the players in mind. That's been fantastic, to have the meeting rooms and the access to the mobile classroom to allow an alternative style of learning. From the weight room, the access to the locker room, the expanded training room. I think it's just been great. And for our construction staff, Dan [Krantz], Woody [Benisek-Beal] and Gale [Titus], for us to be able to get in here ahead of schedule, to have the draft room and everything over here. I appreciate everything that everybody's done to get us to this point. As soon as the players are gone, like any house, there's a punch list that they're going to get started on, little things that you'll notice. So, I'm excited about getting that right. But I just appreciate Jonathan and Robert's support since I've been here. They made a commitment to me, my staff and given us every opportunity to improve through free agency, the draft, the moves that we made. So, I'm just excited to be in this new building.

Q: Mike, what kind of growth have you seen from Will Campbell?

MV: I think just maturity. I think he's studying the game. He's trying different things. Spring is the time to try things. The quarterback's not going to get hit, the touchdowns don't count, we talked about that earlier. So, he's working on different sets, working on different techniques. I think at the line of scrimmage, it's so much not the first technique, but it's the secondary response. Both guys aren't going to have their hands inside. The D-lineman isn't going to have their hands inside and the offensive lineman. So, somebody's going to have to do something to change that, to get back in the correct position. I think he's worked hard, conditioning, pushing himself and pushing that group. I think it's been really good to see him and Jared [Wilson] push that group. So, I'm excited about that.

Q: What did Vinny DePalma show you when you kept him on from the previous staff?

MV: He's a great teacher. You start to evaluate young coaches and their ability to use the technology, the excitement of the PowerPoint, the presentation and all these different things. But how quickly he learned our system and his knowledge, that was an easy move and well deserved for Vinny.

Q: You mentioned Jesse Luketa earlier. I am curious, what do you guys like about his skill set, and do you see him as an on and off-ball player or more of a pure edge?

MV: I mean, I think that Jesse's played football in the NFL, he's played special teams, he's had a role outside. So, I think that there's versatility to him. I think that there's a toughness to him. I like his play style. I think he'll be a good addition.

Q: You guys signed a couple guys off of tryouts from rookie minicamp, Peter Manuma, Xavier Holmes. I'm just curious what you saw from them in that tryout that led to giving them that contract and what you've seen from them since?

MV: X was a productive college player. There's a lot of reasons guys fall through the draft or maybe don't sign as a free agent. He came here. You're just looking for little things. Are they coachable? They make a mistake, and can they correct it? You look at effort, you look at skill set. Sometimes when they're doing the drills, X was able to do that. Most of the guys, you have to do something to kind of stand out, and he did that.

Q: Coach Bill Belichick always said, "Defense wins championships." What do you believe wins championships?

MV: I think that defense certainly will help you win championships. I think the ability for a team to feed off each other is something that's critical. Certainly, taking care of the football, playing complementary football. We talk about the special teams are the unit that sets the table for both. Our ability to kind of feed off each other and to finish drives off. We're in the red zone today, so you'll see us down there today at practice, how critical that area is. Defensively, it's about limiting points. I think that we talked about the standard of defense is what we did in the playoffs in the red zone down there. So, you're going to need more than just some defense, but having great defense, it travels and it goes anywhere. It goes in the heat, it goes in the cold, in the rain and goes on the road. So, defense is certainly very important.

Q: You teach players so much, but what is a lesson that you've learned from the players?

MV: That's a great question. I think that you learn a lot if you can just build a relationship with these guys. You learn how they handle stress and how they handle the rigors of the season. You learn other ways to do things and other techniques. You learn other ways to teach players and say, "Hey, remember the one time I wasn't understanding this, and I did it a little differently, or I studied it a little differently and I picked it up. Maybe that'll help with this player." So, you learn a lot from players, and certainly, that's what makes this business rewarding for me is being around them. I'll miss them. I'm sure they won't miss me that much for the 40 days that they're gone. But they're NFL players for a reason. It's not just because they're tall, fast or strong, but they have a spirit to them, they have wisdom to them. So, we're lucky that we get to coach them.

MV: Before I go, I probably won't speak with you all again for a while. From June 19-27, Massachusetts is sending 95 Special Olympians, coaches and staff members to Minnesota for the games. We'd appreciate any support you can show them. The athletes and coaches put so much time and effort into an amazing cause. A lot of you saw the flag football game on the field when we practiced against the Vikings last year, but now we'll have 95 athletes, coaches and staff will be up there for some time in June, and anything we can do to support and encouragement would mean a lot.