New England Patriots - NESN.com
The New England Patriots are outperforming their preseason expectations… so much so that they’re in a position to have real playoff success… while their second-year quarterback is making a giant leap… and their head coach settles in during his second run at leading the way for a franchise…
Sound familiar?
New England has received plenty of comparisons between what they did in 2001 and what they’re doing in 2025, with the latest example coming on Monday’s episode of WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show.
“No — I mean, that team in 2001, it was 5-5, won nine games after Thanksgiving,” Vrabel immediately responded when asked he understands the comparisons.
“You know, I do think that the season starts now, you know? The NFL season – this is when it starts, and we’ll have to be playing our best each and every week to give ourselves a chance. And so, I don’t – the comparisons and things are kind of interesting, but we know that they’re not that important.”
Vrabel won’t ever entertain anything even closely resembling comparisons, as we all know they’re the thief of joy, but calling it interesting is about as close as he’ll get to doing so. Who knows? Maybe he does see it…
