New England Patriots - NESN.com
Mike Vrabel will hold his New England Patriots players to strict standards throughout the 2025 season. That also applies to anyone buying him a birthday cake.
The head coach turned 50 years old on Thursday. At the start of his press conference, Vrabel told reporters that carrot cake is the only acceptable dessert to commemorate the occasion.
“There’s one answer,” Vrabel said. “It’s carrot cake. That’s it.”
Vrabel clarified that he likes other cakes, but carrot cake is “the only one that I’ll eat on my birthday.” The former All-Pro linebacker also said he’s feeling his age from a physical standpoint.
Well, let’s hope no Patriots staffers got him a chocolate cake.
Vrabel has more than birthday cake on his mind these days. After a year away from the sidelines, the 2021 Coach of the Year returns to lead his former team.
Twenty-eight years ago, Vrabel joined the NFL as a third-round pick. He began his first of eight seasons with the Patriots in 2001, winning three Super Bowls for head coach Bill Belichick.
Vrabel began his head coaching career by leading the Tennessee Titans to four straight winning records and three consecutive playoff berths. They eliminated New England from the 2019 postseason in Tom Brady’s final game with the organization before reaching the AFC Championship Game and winning the AFC South in 2020.
The Titans fell to 7-10 in 2022 and fired Vrabel after going 6-11 in 2023. He now replaces Jerrod Mayo as New England’s head coach following a 4-13 season, but hopes are high that he can steer Drake Maye and Co. to a considerably improved mark in 2025.
While carrot cake is his preferred birthday treat, it’s unclear if any other type would be acceptable to celebrate a postseason bid.
