MORSE: Patriots Should Be Looking to Win One for the Gipper in Tennessee
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Mike Vrabel downplayed the revenge game angle in his press conference, stating that this wasn’t a “win one for the Gipper” game. It may be more important to the players and coaches who have ties to the Titans and Vrabel when he coached there.
The Patriots are not going to overlook the Titans. They likely want to win this game for their Head Coach.
Here is the list of players who played for Tennessee:
Harold Landry
Robert Spillane
Jack Gibbens
Joshua Dobbs
Austin Hooper
Brenden Jaimes (PS)
Isaiah Iton (IR)
Andrew Rupcich (PS)
Thomas Odukoya (PS)
Also, add in the number of coaches and Front Office personnel that were at Tennessee:
John “Stretch” Streicher (VP of Football Operations and Strategy)
Terrell Williams (Defensive Coordinator)
Zak Kurtz Interim Defensive Coordinator and ILB Coach)
Tony Dews (RB Coach)
Jason Houghtailing Asst Offensive Line Coach)
Scott Booker (Safties Coach)
Clint McMillan (Defensive Line Coach)
Justin Hamilton (Cornerbacks Coach)
Tom Quinn (Assistant Special Teams Coach)
Ryan Cowden (VP Player Personnel)
Frank Piriano (Director of Sports Performance)
Comings and Goings
The New England Patriots announced per Patriots.com that rookie TE Marshall Lang and Safety Richie Grant have been signed to the practice squad and that DB Tyron Herring and TE Gee Scott Jr. have been released from the practice squad.
Grant, 27, is a veteran of four NFL seasons with the Atlanta Falcons after entering the NFL as a second-round draft pick in the 2021 NFL Draft out of UCF. The 6-foot, 200-pounder, was signed by the San Francisco 49ers as an unrestricted free agent this past offseason but was released prior to the start of the season. He has played in 67 games with 33 starts and has accumulated 264 total tackles, 3 sacks, 3 interceptions, 17 passes defensed and 11 special teams tackles.
Lang, 23, was originally signed by the Seattle Seahawks as a rookie free agent out of Northwestern on May 2, 2025. The 6-foot-4, 252-pounder, was released by Seattle on Aug. 26, 2025. He played in 47 games during his college career and finished with 48 receptions for 491 yards and 4 touchdowns. Lang lasted one day and was waived on Thursday!
Herring, 24, was signed to the New England practice squad on Sept. 23, 2025. The 6-foot-1, 201-pounder was originally signed by the Green Bay Packers as a rookie free agent out of Delaware on May 2, 2025, and was released by the Packers on Aug. 26, 2025. He played in 40 games with 29 starts during his college career at Dartmouth (2019, 2021-22) and at Delaware (2023-24). He recorded 121 total tackles, 15 passes defended and 5 interceptions.
Scott, 24, was originally signed by New England as a rookie free agent out of Ohio State on May 9, 2025. The 6-foot-3, 240-pounder was released by New England at the end of training camp and was initially signed to the practice squad before being released. He was re-signed to the practice squad on Sept. 24, 2025. Scott spent five seasons at Ohio State (2020-24) and converted to tight end after beginning his college career as a wide receiver.
On Thursday, the Patriots signed TE Thomas Odukoya and DT Leonard Taylor III to the Practice Squad . Odukoya, a native of Amsterdam, played under Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel with the Titans in 2022 and 2023. The 6-foot-6, 253-pound tight end finished his college career at Eastern Michigan before going undrafted in 2022. He began the 2025 season on the Titans’ practice squad, as an International Pathways Program player. The Titans added him to the 53-man roster Saturday and waived him Tuesday. He appeared in two games in 2024 but didn’t accumulate any stats.
He will be designated as the International Pathway Program player with the release of David Olajiga. Taylor went undrafted out of Miami in 2024 and has spent the last two seasons with the Jets. The 6-foot-3, 305-pound defensive lineman made the 53-man roster out of camp as a rookie. He was waived on Tuesday.
The Patriots waived David Olajiga, their International Pathway Program player, and TE Marshall Lang, whom they signed yesterday.
Eagles Sign Two Ex-Pats to Practice Squad and Jettison Javon Baker
They signed LB Titus Leo and TE Jaheim Bell. Both players have an excellent chance of being elevated this week because of injuries to players on the 53-man roster. Earlier this week they waived WR Javon Baker off the Practice Squad. Baker hasn’t been picked up by any team yet.
Game Prediction
The Tennessee Titans don’t belong on the same field as the Patriots. The Titans are near the bottom in every statistical category. If the Patriots can continue to play error free football and win the turnover battle, Drake Maye should be good enough to beat the Titans. However, this is the NFL, and on any given Sunday, an underdog team can upset a favored team.
The Titans are playing at home, and they have fired their Head Coach which should give them a bump. Is it enough to beat the Patriots? I don’t think so. Too many ex-players and ex-coaches won’t let the team fall into the trap of a new coach. This is also Vrabel’s homecoming, and I think the team will be sky high for this game. If Maye plays the way he has for the last 4 weeks they should dominate the Titans. I’m thinking NE 27 – TEN 10 in a dominating win.
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