One of the things new head coach Mike Vrabel preached since arriving in New England has been an emphasis on relationships between his players.
He’s put an emphasis on guys getting to know each other. Both on and off the field.
That was something he said during Vrabel’s first Patriots press conference, adding that if guys don’t know and trust the guy next to them, it’s tough for them to believe in each other.
“We have to get to know each other,” said Vrabel as he talked about his vision with his new team back in January. “We got to peel some layers back so that you can hold each other accountable. Because if you don’t trust the guy next to you, you don’t believe in him, or you don’t know anything about his family or how he was raised, when you hold him accountable, then there’s pushback.”
“What we’re hoping to build is an environment that everyone respects everyone,” he continued. “That we take time to talk, and ask, and listen. When somebody asks you a question, that you sit there and you take time to answer and listen to them. It’s important. And not just have a bunch of fly-bys in the hallway and be like, ‘How are you doing?’ And then keep it moving. ‘How are you coming out of that game?’ You know what I mean? There’s a little banged up. ‘How are you feeling?’ But that takes time. Those relationships take time, and I’m excited to start building them.”
So far, his players seem to have taken this message to heart. Guys already sound like they’re excited to play for each other. Everyone talks about other guys in the room and how much they’ve enjoyed getting to know them. It’s been a theme we’ve heard quite a bit, and it feels like the vibe already to this point is significantly different than it was a year ago.
“I think it’s a really connected group already, especially for the short amount of time that we’ve been together,” said linebacker Jack Gibbens on Monday. “Guys just want to play hard for each other, want each other to do well. I think we got a lot of talent, a lot of guys who really play with a chip on their shoulder, play hard, play physical. I’m really excited about the group that we got for sure.”
Safety Jaylinn Hawkins echoed that sentiment. Adding that he also enjoys spending time with his teammates off the field.
“I love our room. I love it,” he said. “Everybody that we got, we all help each other from old to young. We all in here with one goal, and that is to get better, to get the ball, and to play hard, and do what safety’s doing in the back end. So we embrace each other, man, from on and off the field, from, like I said, hanging out off the field and hanging out on the field.”
“You want to hang out when you’re on the field, meaning you want to have fun when you’re out there. And when we do that together and we’re on the same page and we’re aligned, assigned, and do our fundamentals and technique, it’s a good sight.”
What Vrabel has preached seems to be working. Guys seem to be on the same page and the overall rhythm of the practices feels different than it did a year ago.
Another moment on Tuesday was evident when Drake Maye found Stefon Diggs for a touchdown. After Diggs scored, he and Demario Douglas celebrated together and did a handshake, and were then greeted by the rest of the receivers along with Rhamondre Stevenson and the offensive line, with Maye also joining in as the guys took a moment to celebrate the play.
That’s the type of thing you hope to see at this point in the preseason. That foundation and those relationships are what will help them when things start getting real and the adversity sets in.
Because they’re all in it together.
“We’re definitely close, and we’re getting that camaraderie going, which is huge,” said Kyle Dugger recently. “And guys are ready to really grow and learn together. And it’s definitely there.”
“It’s a veteran group. And so, yeah, I say we’re definitely getting closer as the time goes on.”
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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.
