PATRIOTS HEAD COACH MIKE VRABEL
PRESS CONFERENCE
June 9, 2026
Q: During this stretch of the offseason program and the workouts, have you already seen some growth in Drake Maye? If so, how so?
MV: Yeah, I think we have seen growth in a lot of players, especially some of the younger ones, which I would consider Drake, going into his third year, one of those younger players. I think that Josh [McDaniels] and Ashton [Grant] have given him some really positive things to work on, some areas of focus, and being able to try to limit mistakes at the line of scrimmage, right? Get us in the best play. Not that we are going to be perfect, but being able to use every resource that we have to get us into the right play and be able to give us an option to have a positive play. Whether they are pressuring or they are in a look that is not advantageous to the play, we do not want to be tentative, so there is a fine line of that. But I think expanding some of that into the second year of the system has been good to see here in the spring.
Q: Any report-wise? Share attendance or anything like that? Is everybody here that you need here?
MV: Everybody under contract is here and accounted for. As it relates to practice, everybody will have a different plan at practice. Some guys will be full; some guys will be limited. Some guys will work on the other field, but it has been a good day, and it is much better than yesterday when they were not here. It has been a great day to have everybody back and coach and teach, and moving into the red zone, which is so critical, which is somewhere where we struggled defensively, except for the playoffs, which I think is the big reason why we were able to get to where we got to. Offensively, just too many negative plays and turnovers. So, we did a lot of good things offensively, just pretty average in the red zone.
Q: Mike, I do not believe Gabe Jacas has signed. Is he part of that group that is here?
MV: He is not part of that group that is here.
Q: Do you attribute his absence to last year? We saw a rise in second-round picks hold out until they sign their contract. Do you attribute it to that?
MV: I do not attribute it to anything other than he is not here and that he is not under contract at this current time. So, I do not want to say that there is a reason for it other than that is what it is right now.
Q:. Is he dealing with anything physical?
MV: Yeah, he had a procedure, and he is not under contract.
Q: How much, if at all, have you had a chance to work with him a little bit?
MV: With Gabe? Not at all. We have talked, communicated and met him numerous times before the draft process, but not on the grass.
Q: Has that been frustrating for you that you have not been able to work with him?
MV: No, it has not. Not one bit. I have been excited to work with the players here and have learned that there are only so many things that you can control. I am excited about the development of the guys in that room, ones that have been here that are going into their second year, or the ones that we drafted, or the ones that we signed in the post-draft or the ones that we signed in free agency.
Q: Mike, how far behind will be by this time?
MV: I do not know. I know that we are here for eight weeks and 10, 11 OTAs or whatever that is. I do not know. I cannot say, will not say. I do not think that is fair to anybody.
Q: Are there going to be any restrictions with Harold Landry III? He was still doing some rehab. Where is he at physically at this point?
MV: Again, Harold has played a lot of football, and so we just have to try to — this is all part of everyone has a little different plan. I think you guys understand that, having spent a year with us and kind of how we operate. So, he is very involved, very heavily involved in the meetings and the workouts and in a leadership role. For him to take reps right now in the spring, I feel like is unnecessary. We will just keep working to make sure that he is ready to go when we need him.
Q: You referenced some of the younger guys who have been here. I am curious specifically about Bradyn Swinson and Elijah Ponder, how they have done with the added opportunities they have gotten over the course of the year.
MV: Well, I think physically, they both have worked really hard with Frank [Piraino] and his group in the time that they spent away from here, however long that was. That was evident when they came back. I just think from a maturity, from getting stronger and being better conditioned, those things really stood out. I think that through the course of the eight or nine weeks, that has become evident on the field as well.
Q: So guys who have missed OTAs, do you speak to them about why they missed OTAs, or do you just move on at this point, now that you are in minicamp?
MV: No, those are voluntary. I talk to most of the players all the time. There is communication, whether they are here or they are not. Again, there are multiple reasons on our team and across the league why guys would not be at a voluntary workout. Just coach them when they get here. That is usually the best plan of attack.
Q: How is it to have Christian Gonzalez back, and just how have conversations gone with him as he tries to negotiate for a new extension?
MV: Good. Conversations have been great. I talked to him about his event last week. I talked to him about normal things that we talk about. It is good to have everybody back in here that either was here last week or that was not. It is just good to have an almost complete football team here. I am excited to keep working.
Q: When it comes to nose tackle, you had Khyiris Tonga in that room last year. Cory Durden, we spoke with him last week, and he kind of said he anticipates filling that role and moving into that spot. What have you seen from him this offseason, and is that a role you anticipate him kind of filling?
MV: Well, I do not want to fill any role right now. I think that that will be an opportunity for Cory. By saying that, I am excited for Cory. I am excited that we had a full offseason with him, that we will have a full training camp with him. He came in and quickly earned the confidence of the coaching staff and his teammates and had a great play demeanor. So, I am happy for his ability to be able to help us last year. But again, that has to all be played out in training camp. There are other young guys, Lenny [Leonard Taylor III], Joshua Farmer, [Eric] Gregory and everybody else, those are all — it is a good group, and I am excited, and I know the defensive coaches are excited about working with those guys, too. Just having him in the system another year, being able to coach him in the offseason and coach him at training camp hopefully will only help. But he did a lot of good things for us last year.
Q: Mike, when you brought in Gabe Jacas, did you know that he was going to need a procedure when you drafted him?
MV: Again, he just had to have a procedure, and he is not under contract. So, we are excited about Gabe, the person that he is, the play style, his production in college and all that. So, when that gets resolved, we will have him in here and we will coach him, and I am sure we will find a way for him to help our football team.
Q: Are you still in negotiations with Christian Gonzalez at this moment?
MV: I am not involved with the negotiations. I am involved with coaching this team.
Q: Still, have you got an update, nothing like that?
MV: Nothing to add. He is still under his — I do not think there is anything to report. I will say that.
Q: How are things with Kayshon Boutte right now? Do you expect him to participate fully here ?
MV: I do not know if he will participate fully, just because I do not think that is fair to him to just say, "Hey, go run 20 reps." Again, I think that part of this is about evaluating where guys are, getting them reacclimated to what the new stuff is that we are putting in in the red zone. Then based on how he does and looks, I think that could certainly change. But again, we want to be smart with everybody that we have. For the guys that we have not seen, I think it is only right to make sure that they are where everybody else is based on how we practice.
Q: Are you also expecting Christian to be limited from seeing reps?
MV: Yeah, I would say just like everybody else, that everybody has a plan, and I have got to make sure that everybody is working and getting what they need to get.
Q: Mike, now that A.J. [Brown] has been here for a week, how is everything going for him?
MV: I think good. I think the weekend probably served him well to be able to take a deep breath and get some rest. I am sure it has been a whirlwind for him, but he is excited about learning the system and eventually moving around and doing different things. I think it has been great just having him around and continuing to integrate himself into our football team.
Q: Mike, you mentioned at the Combine asking the coaches to bring some new ideas when you guys reconvened. What have those tried to achieve or unlock defensively, and are you pleased with the progress there?
MV: You mean from the defensive side of the ball? Man, I think you are always just looking. Spring is a time where the touchdowns do not count and the sacks do not count. So, I think you try to figure out different blitzes and disguises. I appreciate what everybody brought to the table and the ideas that they had in all phases of first and second down, and things that we try to add on third down and really try to shore up the red zone. So, the spring is the time where you evaluate the stuff that you try to come up with and what it may look like or what the issues are. Then as you get closer to training camp, some of that may get pared down.
Q: Mike, you mentioned red zone efficiency. In terms of the personnel that you brought in in the offseason, both on the offensive and defensive side of the ball, how much of a focus was how good they are in the red zone in terms of bringing guys in?
MV: Well, it is a critical area. It is a critical situation. We were fifth in red zone drives offensively, but unfortunately, we were middle of the pack and too many negative plays, too many turnovers. Almost half of our turnovers were in the red zone. So, that hurts you there. Defensively, you have to be on body, you have to be in tight coverage, making sure teams do not run the football in on you, and just understanding how critical every yard is and being great tacklers and communicating all the motions and the pre-snap motions and different routes, combinations that they have.
Q: Mike, on the bigger scale, what are you looking for out of your team that you can rely on, that can tell you the foundation you built last year is solid enough to now risk and review?
MV: I think that that's probably not going to happen. I don't know if that happens during the spring. I think we can still focus on the things that we think are important for our identity and when and how we want to win football games and how we want to prepare. But really, a lot of that comes in training camp and being able to callus yourself through some of the rigors of the season. So, as we continue to build that foundation and how we work and how we practice against each other is going to be something that's critical. That's how you improve in training camp. Some of those battles that you have in training camp give you a lot of confidence going into the season.
Q: I know running back is a tough position to evaluate this time of the year, but what have you seen from Lan Larison and how he's grown from last year?
MV: He worked really hard to work through the injury and just continue to get stronger and give himself another opportunity going into training camp. Mentally, he's not a rookie. I think just the experience probably may seem somewhat new to him again when we get to training camp. But as a player that's trying to find a role on special teams — and you're right, it is hard. Half the battle for the backs is being able to identify where the pressure's coming from, what their blitz pickup is, and then there's really not much of a blitz pickup as everybody stops once they get there. So, he's done a good job with that. A lot of that will come with pads and whether they can break tackles and pick up pressure.
