Head Coach Mike Vrabel 5/9: "These guys are off to a good start"

Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel addresses the media on Friday, May 9, 2025.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
How are you guys stand. We'll talk about that. We'll
talk about that later. I'd like to be able to
see your pretty faces over there. Appreciate you guys coming
out here and covering us. Someone to update you. One
update on the coaching staff. Trell Williams won't be out

(00:20):
there today. Trell's working through a medical condition. Have been
in constant communication with him daily. Zach Korr has been
handling those responsibilities in Trell's absence, but Treill's eager to
get back and we're excited to get him back. He's
still been in contact with the players through Zoom, with

(00:42):
myself and then the rest of the coaching staff. So
that'll be if Stacey's gonna make him available this afternoon
to you guys so that you guys can get some
updates and he'll speak on his behalf and then his
role right now with our defense. I'm excited to get
to work here with the with the groups of players
that we have here, with the drafted players, the undrafted

(01:02):
players that we've signed, and then there's some tryout players.
There's also some players that are currently on our roster
for them that have been working really hard through five
weeks excited to see what they can do and provide
some leadership this weekend. So with that, Karen, what do
you got aside from what you see on the field
in the next coming games, what point may be looking

(01:25):
for from these workings in terms of inside the room,
more leadership and so on. Well, I think the leadership
will come. I think that the more competent that they
are and their job and their ability to help the
player next to them would be a good, great place
to start with leadership. The whole goal of this weekend

(01:47):
is to get them acclimated to the program that we've
tried to build over five weeks with our players and
so that on Monday they're ready to go as they
enter into this end of phase two with our football team,
and our football team can see that the players that
we brought in are are ones that are going to

(02:09):
put the team first and all the things that we've
asked them them to do in five weeks, and so
that these rookies, you know, have to get a crash course.
So excited about that and getting them acclimated like a player,
you know what you do what catches your eye when
it comes to a kid trying to live on an
NFL tream. Well, there's you know, there's talent there. There

(02:30):
has to be something that we see when you're talking
about maybe some of the tryout players or the undrafted players.
You know there there has to be some score sort
of skill set, right, there's height, weight, speed, and you know,
something that they're going to do. It's a lot of
this is can they take all the information that we've
given them h from from this morning, uh, and the
walkthrough that we had with them and being able to

(02:52):
translate that onto the field and not have it be
too big, or that they quickly correct mistakes and that
they're coachable. Uh, those are some things I think would
stand out with Terrell. You're excited to get him back.
When you get him back, is it something that he's
going to be able to return to you guys soon
or is this maybe going to threaten his availability this

(03:12):
season for you? Gus, Well, I'm not going to touch
on anything other than as we go forward filled there
won't be many timelines from me as it relates to
you know, time away from from players or anybody else.
So you know, you guys don't want to know. I
won't be able to provide any timeline for for any
you know, issues that players miss time or people that

(03:33):
are away from here. So now I think Arrell will
be able to you know, talk through a lot of
that stuff. I think it's probably best that, like everything else,
we let them speak for themselves. Like what made Zach
in your mind, the right guy to step in for
trell Uh. You know, a lot of this stuff was
planned out, I think as far as just the installation

(03:56):
and the things that we were going to do. So
from that sort of thing, they they did all that
as a staff, We did all that as a staff.
It just felt like Zach has great knowledge of what
we've done here in the past, uh, with with me
and this system and with trell Uh. But you know,
all our coaches over there, you know, Book handled and
Book and Jay Hamm have been coordinating the secondary and again,

(04:19):
the phase two of this off season is about individual development.
It's about skill development, working through individual drills and the
things that we're going to do to develop them. And yeah,
there's installation that goes on, but a lot of that
is done you know, in the position rooms. And then
obviously there there's a defensive identity that we want to

(04:40):
build UH and all those coaches have taken, uh taken
a role and will continue to take a role. Uh
in that identity. How much have you gotten to interact
with aj Heismith and what went into the decision to
bring them up more? Uh? There was an opening you know,
we needed, uh, you know, to to make sure that
we did our due diligence and filled that. It was

(05:03):
a young, young it, you know, but but it has
some experience with some other organizations, and that's about what
we had. I remember that. I think I was ninety
six at the time. I think I probably wore four
numbers at Pittsburgh. So when guys make a big deal
about numbers, I'm like, I think I had four of
them in the first four years of my career. So

(05:27):
I don't remember a whole bunch. I don't. I don't,
I I other than being in the outfield of three
River Stadium and have to be off the field at
a certain time because there was batting practice that was
starting a coaching situation. How much has it tilted at all?
Think you doesn't head coach the ability to go wherever
you want to know? Are you tilted more? Defense? Just No,

(05:48):
I don't think anything's changed for me as far as
my involvement in all three phases help with the special teams.
Enjoy those meetings because I know how critical it is
for some players some tight ends. You know, for example
at Jaheim and Jack Westover that that really haven't had
a whole lot of experience in that. And those are
the players that are eager and excited to learn that,

(06:10):
and so we're going to try to help them that
they can help themselves and help the team. Love being
in the offensive line, love being with the defense. So
sitting in with the receivers, I learned a lot and
I feel like, you know, there's things that I can
help as well. It seems like you're stressing like the
younger players this offseason just based off with a lot

(06:31):
of moves. You mean, what kind of is the significance
of having so many younger players in the rofster and
how does that kind of help move to seam along?
As it's you, I couldn't tell you what the age
of any one of our players is, and I know
that that's probably your your perspective. That's not anything that
I really have evaluated. I think if you look at

(06:53):
the free agency, I think that there's a lot of
different players that have different levels of experience, and then
when you look to fill a roster, you're gonna have
to fill it somehow. So we drafted eleven players. We signed,
however many in the post draft, and that's kind of
where we're at. So anybody that can help us. Age

(07:14):
has never been anything that really concerned us. It's about
production and their value to the football team. Like you
just mentioned, special teams touched on that phase in establishing
a culture and setting a tone for your football team.
As important as the other two phases are, how important
is special teams people doing well? I think it. I
think it's critical. I think the amount of field position

(07:38):
uh that changes hands and the kickoff, and and how
how critical that return phase is going to be, and
the ability to to get the ball and understand and
after the adjustments that were made in the in the
in the rules, how we limit penalties. You know, you
talk about the impact that penalties make on the return phase.

(07:59):
How critical are the lost yardages? You can create, momentum,
you can maintain momentum, being able to flip the field.
And we have to punt. I mean we've worked on
punts so much. I told them the other day. I
hope we don't have to punt that much, but if
we do, I think we're ready for it, just from
from how much we've worked at it and how much
they've improved, and in the first installation with with the

(08:21):
veteran players, so special teams is how I made it,
you know, in the first four years of my career.
So it's certainly something that I'm I can appreciate and
explain to the players how critical that is for most
of these rookies outside of the lineman. It'll be their
easiest way to a roll on this football team. Are
you expecting a full slate of rookies out here today

(08:43):
or have any injuries turned up in the past week?
Spit light when somebody what my experience has been, Karen
As you guys have that roster, and you guys will
go and look and check it off. And I don't
want to do your job for you. I want to
allow you to have some interesting things when we stretch
and go through all that. Jake Willcox, the try quarterback

(09:06):
on a Brown, Jake Wio, what made you bring it
into the I think that this is you know, these tryouts.
I think again it's it's a it's a local player
looking for an opportunity. Excited to be able to offer
him that, just like we brought in, you know, Hector
from Endicott, and you know we'll give him every opportunity

(09:30):
to compete to throw. It's an extra arm. He got
the same amount of walkthrough reps that Ben did, so
he'll come out there today and and try to take
the meetings to the field and walk through to the field.
Thanks guys,