Mike Vrabel has had an impressive start to his coaching tenure with the New England Patriots. The team is 5-2 and riding high after a four-game winning streak. They’ve looked excellent on both sides of the ball during this hot stretch as well. It’s becoming undeniable the impact Vrabel has had in his first season, so much so that some analysts believe he has the DNA of legends.
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And you can’t really blame those pundits. This was a team that went 4-13 over the past two seasons and went through two coaching changes. It seemed like the days of the Patriots’ dynasty were long gone. But enter Vrabel, who has made Drake Maye look worth every bit of that third overall pick, backed by a defense making big plays week after week.
This remarkable improvement even led analyst Chris Simms to say Vrabel has a magic touch of sorts.
“The Patriots are one of the hottest teams in the sport right now. Mike Vrabel’s got the magic touch,” Simms said on ProFootballTalk.
This is now Vrabel’s seventh season coaching in the NFL. And while things eventually petered out with the Tennessee Titans, everyone took notice of what he built there up to that point. From 2018 to 2021, Vrabel and the Titans went 41-24 and made an appearance in an AFC Championship Game. So, he’s always been well respected.
But Simms decided to show Vrabel the ultimate respect, comparing him to Bill Parcells. “Mike Vrabel just continues to give me Bill Parcells vibes,” the former QB shared.
This led Simms’ co-host, Mike Florio, to share his own take on the vibe he gets from Vrabel:
“Oh, he’s the perfect combination of Parcells and Belichick. He’s right in that sweet spot. With the good and minimal amounts of the bad,” Florio responded.
While it sounds like a lofty comparison on the surface, there are some signs to justify the claim. After all, Vrabel has the charisma of Parcells, which is evident after big wins when he joins in on player celebrations. It often feels like he’s one of them. He also has the sharp football IQ that Belichick is known for, demanding smart and versatile players to fit his scheme.
Of course, Vrabel doesn’t have the eight combined Super Bowls that Parcells and Belichick share, but he could very well win one soon.
All in all, it makes sense that some of Belichick’s style rubbed off on Vrabel since he once played for him. But the former player in him gives him the charisma similar to Parcells. That’s why Florio’s comparison feels pretty spot-on, and we’ll likely see these qualities in Vrabel continue to grow, just as they did with every legendary coach before him.
