PATRIOTS HEAD COACH MIKE VRABEL
PRESS CONFERENCE
June 9, 2025
Q: I was wondering if you view Drake Maye as a natural born leader, or someone who's evolving into that role?
MV: Well, I think we're always trying to evolve in what we do, whether that's leadership, whether that's learning the other side of the football, whether that's learning each other. Again, Drake, I think it's a unique position being 22; it's kind of unique in that sense. So, I think that there is a lot of room to grow. I think there's a lot of natural leadership qualities. I think I have to encourage him, continue to encourage him and to put him in those positions to do that so that the players understand that there's a different version of all of us. There's one that's maybe off the field, that there's one in the meeting room, and then there's a version on the field, which we all have to understand is somewhat different than what it may be off the field.
Q: What makes a good leader as a quarterback, Mike?
MV: I don't think it matters if you're a quarterback, offensive lineman, running back or defensive back. It's about your ability to reach certain players. Again, we don't want to have any gaps. Hopefully, you know what to do, you're prepared, you do things the right way, you're a good listener. I think you can adapt to what happens and adapt to the people you're talking to maybe based on what they need. Sometimes people need a little different encouraging, and sometimes you need a little bit of a firmer hand and maybe a little bit of a firmer stance. I think that's all important of understanding and getting to know each person before you can start to lead them.
Q: What's your goal for this week, Mike? Is it kind of reviewing the things you've done in the spring? Is it competing? Is it setting the stage for what camp will be like?
MV: I think that's where things have kind of changed. This is just an extension of the last nine or 10 days that we've had on the field. It's going to look the same. The only difference is that the time constraint isn't the same. We're not under the same time, so we're going to continue on with our installation, start to try to put first, second, and third down together, move down into the red zone. So, all those things that you talked about as far as competing, that's never going to change when we come out here to practice. We just have to understand that there's parameters to how we compete and staying away from the quarterback, staying off the ground and not going through receivers without pads on. So really, for us, nothing's going to change from the first three weeks.
Q: How has Stefon Diggs done since coming to New England last week?
MV: Good. He's trying to figure out where everything is and what his role is and making sure that as we add those situations – the third down, the no-huddle and red zone – that he's staying up on it, working hard in his rehab. Certain drills he can be out there and there's certain drills that he won't be, but I think he's engaged and I like his energy.
Q: Christian Barmore, when we talked to him a few weeks ago, said he was confident that his medical issues were behind him from last year. Do you share that same confidence, and what have you seen from him in the time you've been with him here for these three or four weeks?
MV: Well, I'm not going to comment on Christian's medical status. I'll leave that up to him, but what I've seen is a player that is excited and that is coachable. Extremely coachable. He has some versatility. He's rushed inside. He's lined up outside. He's worked extremely hard. You've seen him chase and play with great effort down the field. I'm excited to see where he's at, but I've seen a lot of just improvement and a lot of engagement from him since the time that we've been here.
Q: It's very early, but looking at that defensive front, kind of following up on that a little bit, how is that group coming together with Milton [Williams], Christian [Barmore], and Keion [White] altogether?
MV: Well, there's a lot of other names out there as well, so I wouldn't just single those three out. I think that's got to be a strength for us this year, that front seven. We certainly invested in that position, and I like how they're competing. I like how they're working. This is a tough time. It's just like, 'Hey, rush the passer, be a physical presence as a D-Lineman, but to a certain extent in the spring, and then pull back and get out of the way, no bull rushing' and all these things that we give them, but I'm excited about where they're at. They're learning a lot of installation. I think they're working well together. I think they're communicating, which is important. I think they're working hard and they're getting in shape.
Q: Mike, in your experience, how much can culture impact wins and losses, and can it compensate for talent deficiencies?
MV: I don't know what the analytical number is, but I think that there's a style in which you can play that can lead to success. But again, that's never going to make up for execution and players making plays. Hopefully we're prepared, we play hard, and we get good enough that we can take advantage of bad football.
Q: As you've gone through the spring, how have you gotten to know DeMario Douglas, and what have you learned about him and his play style?
MV: Well, I love the person. I love his attitude. I love his spirit. He loves to practice. He loves to play this game. He loves football. That shows. I think he's gotten better. We're moving him around different places, and he's picked up everything that we've asked him to do. The more than he understands, the more we give him. I'm excited to see where he continues to be and continues to grow.
Q: How do you feel about the competition at left guard early on?
MV: We'll be able to evaluate the linemen once we get to training camp. We're moving a lot of guys through there. We'll have to make a lot of those decisions and determinations once we get to training camp and there's pads and start stacking some days together. This is purely a passing camp. I don't know if we get a full evaluation without shoulder pads on as an offensive lineman.
Q: You said it's a passing camp. What have you seen from the receiver room? There's obviously a lot of guys in there. How are you seeing things sorting out so far throughout the spring?
MV: Well, I think guys are stepping up and taking advantage of opportunities. There are some guys are working off on the side, some guys that haven't been available to us. I think that every day, somebody shows us something. It's, 'Can we continue to do it consistently?' We'll go down to the red zone and see who can make some plays and contested catches in tight windows. I like how they've worked. I've liked how they've responded. We've thrown a lot at them now with first, second, third down and then adding red zone and no huddle. Hopefully they're ready to go today with all those situations.
Q: Mike, canceling the practice on Wednesday. Is that something you've done in the past, and what's the thinking behind that?
MV: I just felt like hopefully we can get two good days of work here and get going on to the offseason program. We'll still work; I just didn't want to come out. We'll be out on the field. We'll be lifting, running and meeting.
Q: How do you feel about analytics as a tool, the advent of analytics and how much it's changed in the [last] 15, 20 years? Some people lean on it heavily,some people use it as kind of a guide. What do you do?
MV: We want to use technology to the best of our ability and what we can do to help us be more efficient, to help us make better decisions, informed decisions. I don't think you can rely and base every decision off the numbers, but I also think that those are important to ask questions and then be able to follow up and come to a sound decision on everything that we do. Personnel, coaching decisions, player health and safety, strength and conditioning, every aspect of our program. Hopefully, we'll have some analytical background and data that we can rely on that they can ask questions. When you look at coaching, self-scout and opponent breakdown, how we become more efficient with that system.
Q: Mike, you had a couple questions about leadership and Drake a little bit earlier. I just wanted to follow up on one thing. How have you seen him handle that balance – I imagine it's difficult – the balance between being the guy that everybody likes and wants to be around, but also being demanding? Is that something that you've seen?
MV: Yeah, this is pro football. I don't think everybody's going to like you. I don't think that's something that is possible. We have to do our job. We have to make sure that we're prepared and that ultimately the players can hold each other accountable to play to our standard, play to our identity and know what to do and perform.
Q: Has he shown an ability to maybe push guys and not care about whether or not they like him?
MV: I think that's evolving and that's a work in progress. I think we're all learning each other a little bit. I think we're all learning the system and learning the plays, and once we master it, I think that's going to start to separate itself.
Q: Mike Smith is one of the assistants you brought in who I don't think you had as much experience with as some of the others. A, what appealed to you about him joining the staff, and since he was hired, what has he done with the edge group to help them along?
MV: Mike's a good teacher. He's a very good pass rush teacher. He's an excellent teacher that breaks film down, that can explain moves, that can show guys these moves. He's coached a lot of good pass rushers, whether they're in a two-point stance, a three-point stance, they have a certain play style. The thing I really appreciate about Mike is he can cater to every play style and skill set. He'll show KC [K'Lavon Chaisson] moves and he'll show Keion [White] different moves, and one may be better than another one. So, it's not one-size-fits-all. He's able to coach to all those different guys, and I think you'll see it and have seen it translate to the practice field. I think the moves and the things that they do in individual translates to the team. That's the thing we want to do is make sure that our drills translate to the team periods and then ultimately to the games.
Q: Josh McDaniels mentioned that some of the offensive coaches were showing him cutups of things they wanted to integrate. I'm curious, how important was it for you to integrate some of those principles, and what is it about maybe some West Coast things that you wanted to bring here to New England?
MV: I think you always want to have a very inclusive staff. You want to make sure that people feel comfortable sharing ideas. We understand that not everybody's idea is going to get used, and that goes for defense, that goes for offense. We have to come together and decide what's best for the football team, what our players can handle, and what can marry with what we're already doing and what are some changeups to those things. I love the ideas that everybody's been able to bring, and then hopefully we can blend it here in training camp.
Q: How's the attendance? Is everyone here?
MV: There'll be a couple players for personal reasons, but other than that, we don't have any holdouts, if that's what you mean. There's a couple personal situations that are going to keep a couple guys from being out here.
