Here’s what Mike Vrabel had to say on Saturday in an interview with NFL Network.
On his early impressions of this group:
“I think that they’ve tried to do the things that we’ve asked them to do as far as the way we want to practice and the urgency in which we to move around the practice field. I thought that showed today, just the structure of practice and the flow of it, and getting guys on and off the field and not wasting any time. Again, the execution, some of it’s going to be good and some of it’s going to need to be improved. But I think the guys are working and we’re heading in the right direction.”
On how the structure is coming along for him as he and people within the front office and his staff adapt to each other:
“Good, really good. I think you go through free agency, you go through the draft, and then we’ll have to have another conversation when it comes here to training camp and players that may be available or the ones that as we start to build this football team. Again, it’s early, but I think that there’s been good energy. I think that the coaches are all understand what it is that we’re trying to get done in the installation and how they need to teach their guys. They’ve been around them all spring, and now a week here into training camp.”
On the fact he was around for a lot of the early run of success for this franchise and how much his experience here as a player now shape the way he’s come back here as a head coach, and whether there were other influences that have helped him become a head coach now:
“A lot of influences. I’ve been lucky to be around a lot of great coaches, a lot of great players that I’ve learned from. Trying to take that everywhere I’ve been and formulate, and obviously make that my own style. The history, we’ve talked about this, the banners in the stadium, those are great reminders of the blueprint and what it takes, but those aren’t going to do anything to help us. We have to put the work in, and we have to understand what the plan is, and we have to build our own identity. But certainly, those championships are great reminders.”
On the fact he brought back Josh McDaniels to help him tutor the offense, and what the quarterback coach relationship has been like so far for them:
“Well, I think that I can provide just… Josh is going to handle the details offensively and work with our offensive staff. I’m just going to try to help Drake lead this football team and figure out the ways that he can do it best within his own personality and his own style, but understand he has to be an extension of me and the message and the identity that we’re trying to build. So it’s been fun.”
On if there have been moments along the way where he can point to Drake’s growth in terms of his leadership:
“Those are the things that you start to see. He’s alerting things. He does a really good job of taking things that Josh and Ashton give him in the meeting and translating it to the field, and even in the walkthrough, he’s very intentional in the walkthrough, and he’s using all those reps to help himself.”
On what it’s been like getting back to the area, and if he’s got any old friends ringing him up:
“There is.”
How’s that been?
“There’s a lot of people in the building still. You know that were here when I was a player. It is great. The community, they’re sports fans. This has been fun. You know what you signed up for. Let me just say that. You know what you signed up for. People, they’re hungry for us to win, and we’re hungry to win for them.”
On if he and his wife have gone anywhere and it’s been like, “it’s not the same for us:”
“No, they stayed pretty in a time warped and they look the same as they did in 2008.”
On the fact that on the defensive side, knowing he’s pretty hands on, but with coach Williams having to step away a little bit and now that he’s back, how has he gauged that side of the ball over the last couple of months:
“Well, again, right now we’re all undefeated. We’re just continuing to build, working through the installation. We look at the way that we’re running to the football, the way that we’re able to cover people without fouling, ball disruption, seeing guys use the right techniques, building a foundation. I think that we’re heading in the right direction, but you don’t really know. I like the energy. Again, there’s guys that are excited to come out here and play defense on a practice field.”
On the fact that fans are able to others to track different aspects of practice and chart, and watch everything, and when that becomes relevant for them as they get going into camp:
“I think it always is relevant. I think their ability to operate and function in a walkthrough, or are they making the same mistakes in the walkthrough, and can they get it corrected quickly? That’s one area. Coming out here on the practice field and doing it on a competitive level and doing it repeatedly and then stacking those reps together. Some of those guys that we’ve had out there that are doing that. I recognize that, and I let them know, ‘Hey, this is where we ran into a hiccup yesterday. Let’s keep pushing through, and let’s show up here at the end of practice.'”
(EDITOR’S NOTE: This transcript was done based on the available footage and is subject to typographical errors. If you spot anything, please let me know in the comments below.)
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
