The New England Patriots made it clear they are looking to change things up for the 2025 campaign after picking up just four wins in 2024. Perhaps the biggest move they made over the offseason saw them hire Mike Vrabel as their new head coach shortly after firing Jerod Mayo.
Mayo’s lone season in charge of the Patriots was a complete disaster. While the roster he was given was not exactly great, the culture of the team under Mayo’s lead was sloppy and undisciplined, which is a big reason why he’s no longer with the team.
By bringing Vrabel to town, New England is attempting to reestablish their hard-nosed culture that served it so well during their dynastic run that yielded six Super Bowl championships. And while it’s early, it looks like Vrabel is already working hard on establishing a new culture in Foxboro.
During his previous stint as a head coach in the NFL with the Tennessee Titans, Vrabel’s teams were designed to batter their opponent on both sides of the ball. And based on some comments he made to the team during mandatory minicamp that recently came to light, it sounds like that’s precisely what he is hoping to see with the Patriots.
“There’s gonna be good, and there’s gonna be bad, and then we’re gonna come together and we’re gonna tear (expletive) faces,” Vrabel said during a preview of the second episode of “Forged in Foxborough.”
While things eventually fell apart for Vrabel with the Titans, he turned them into a consistent playoff contender early in his tenure. There’s no doubt that the Patriots hired Vrabel with the hope he could enjoy similar success with them.
There’s reason to believe that New England will be vastly improved in 2025. They spent much of their offseason upgrading their defense, and the offense around second-year quarterback Drake Maye certainly has improved as well.
If all goes according to plan, the Patriots could be a sneaky playoff contender next season. Vrabel is still working on getting his new team to buy into his desired culture, but the early returns have been encouraging.