New England Patriots hire former player Mike Vrabel as head coach

The New England Patriots have hired former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel as their head coach, the team announced Sunday.

Vrabel, 49, went 54-45 in six seasons as the Titans’ coach, plus a 2-3 record in the playoffs. He is also a former player for the Patriots, having played linebacker for the team from 2001-08, winning three Super Bowls.

Vrabel was hired to replace Jerod Mayo, another former New England linebacker, who was fired after only one season with the team. Mayo went 4-13 in his lone year at the helm.

During the 2024 season, Vrabel was a coaching consultant for the Cleveland Browns before his contract expired on Dec. 30 in anticipation of possible head coaching interviews.

Vrabel was a coveted coaching candidate during this year’s hiring cycle. He interviewed with the New York Jets and Chicago Bears before ultimately agreeing to a deal with the Patriots.

Vrabel had a successful start to his tenure in Tennessee. His teams posted winning records in each of his first four seasons and made the playoffs in three straight seasons from 2019 to 2021. Under Vrabel, the Titans made the AFC championship game after the 2019 season. In 2021, Tennessee was the No. 1 seed in the AFC and had a first-round bye.

The Titans missed the playoffs in Vrabel’s last two seasons, however, and their win total decreased from seven to six from 2022 to 2023. In his six years with the team, Tennessee had six different starting quarterbacks.

Vrabel’s coaching career began in college with the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2011. He made the jump to the NFL in 2014, joining the Houston Texans’ defensive staff. He was defensive coordinator for one season in 2017 before taking the Titans job.

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As a player, Vrabel started his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1997 after the team selected him in the third round of that year’s draft. He spent four years with the Steelers before joining New England as a free agent.

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Vrabel became a franchise legend during his eight seasons with the Patriots as one of the best players on a defense that played a major role in the early years of New England’s dynasty. Vrabel was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2023.

New England should offer a more stable quarterback situation for Vrabel in his second head coaching stop. The team selected Drake Maye in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft, and he played well in his rookie season.

In addition to Maye, the Patriots will have the fourth pick in the upcoming draft as well as over $130 million in cap space, per Spotrac.