December 10, 2025 • 12 mins
Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel addresses the media on Wednesday, December 10, 2025.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
I guess Karen, just before you know, I just want
to send anything we can well wishes to Kevin and
Letitia Faalk. Obviously we're all heartbroken. Kevin was a teammate.
He's a huge part of this legacy here, this football team,
and you know the impact that he made and here
(00:24):
and coaching in college and how much he loved LSU.
And I'm sure that they there's no words to describe
what they're going through, but just wanted to make sure
that everybody knows that we care deeply about Kevin and
his family and our thoughts and our prayers are with them.
So obviously a tough time for that, but we have to,
(00:45):
you know, prepare here. I appreciate, thank you. Given the
stakes of the atmosphere, the opponent win or lose, do
you see this game as kind of being the valuable
preps for apply ahead assume they need. Well, I hope
that everything we do, we only have seventeen opportunities, right,
(01:06):
so that all of that has to be valuable. Prep
you know, they all they all count the same at
the end. You know, this is a great stage that
we put ourselves on and that's exciting, but obviously hopefully
we've been able to draw from from different opportunities that
(01:27):
we've had to help us. And so what we're focused
on is is the previous opportunities that can help us
this week, and then whatever we're able to learn from
the game on Sunday going forward to help us the
next week. That's what we're trying to do, Like what
are some of the challenges that the second meeting, and
then in a vision that you've seen over the years,
(01:51):
they've they've changed, they've continued to evolve, and you know,
they've continued to improve. You know, we talked about the
respect that we have for them as a as a
football team, players and coaches, and just draw on some
games here in the past. I mean it's twenty to ten.
(02:13):
In our game, they didn't bat an eye. They came
back and tied it in the fourth quarter. We were
up two scores in the fourth quarter. You know, we
needed our best execution and kick to win it. Well,
it was the Tampa Bay game, you know, being down
and then winning the game going away, Pittsburgh down seven
(02:33):
to three, and then really just played tremendous football in
the second half, and then last week to score game
with eight minutes to go in the fourth quarter, So
never any panic over there. That's a veteran team. They're
familiar with their program. So however the game unfolds, it'll
we'll have to do everything that we can to to
(02:55):
play the entire fourth quarters or then some if we
need to. Buffalo was challenged all across the board. But
in terms of their offense, how important did Josh allen
is tight end part of that offense? I think that's grown.
I think that you know, I mean, you can see
when Ken Kid's back out there, the the matchup and
(03:16):
his skill set in the passing game, you know, great
speed and athleticism, catch radius, very quarterback friendly. Obviously, Dawson
does a little bit of both, and Hawes has just
you know, been able to really I would say, not
(03:37):
only neutralized, but moved the line of scrimmage on his responsibilities.
And I think they just continued to evolve in that
regard and using you know, all three of those guys,
like the people in Las Vegas, have you guys as underdogs,
sundown the people ben there you go are there called
(04:00):
odds makers not people. There's a lot of people in
Las Vegas like they only it's only a few of
them that they trust to set the line. So do
you pay attention to that? I mean, do you notice that? No,
I mean again it gets brought to attention. I don't
think that, you know, I mean it's every week you see,
(04:23):
you know in this league that records really don't mean anything,
and you know, the point spreads and survivor pools get
blown up every week and all that other stuff. So
we're just trying to focus on our preparation here and
get back into it. You know, had a good day Monday,
excited about the meetings thus far today and then you
(04:46):
know progress through the week we've built in both.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Being out for the last couple of games.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
What do you see the group of Jnsters is a
big guys like Corymeric Yeah, and I think Corey's continue
to improve and play a lot of football for us
and Eric's you know, taking the opportunities on Thursdays that
we've had and those competitive practices to get better and
to get better. And you know, again we'll need everybody
(05:11):
up front how important the ability to stop the run
is this week, and you know that's just a large
part of what they do. They have a lot of
confidence in it. Not the only thing that they do.
They do a lot of things well, but you know,
certainly they're going to run it until you stop them,
and then they're going to have everything off of it.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
Like going on I think Josh Allen's long touchdown round
last week, Son's defensive back who's still covering a wide receiver,
Josh Allen's goning to get into the end zone. And
I'm just thinking on the perfect example why you don't
want to play man against Alan? Does he remove things
that you can do defensively because of this versupport?
Speaker 1 (05:49):
Well, you just have to Again, I don't think you
can sit in any one thing. And certainly there's situations
where you have to play man in this league and
you have to be on body, But then again there's
other things that then have to account When you have
an athletic quarterback, you know, how are you going to
account for the extra gap or the ability to scramble,
(06:11):
uh to extend plays and all those different things. So
I don't think that there's one particular coverage or defense
or blitz that you can sit there and be in
the entire game. I think it's about picking the opportunities
and then you know when you get an opportunity to
make a play on him, you've got to do everything
that you can to, you know, to get him on
(06:33):
the ground and not jump when he pumped fakes or
fall down when he steff arms here or anything else
he applied when you were you held kustonton your fifty
rushing yards. I'm just curious when you look up at
that film. What allowed the defense to be in limiting
that run game. Well, I mean, I think the way
that we got you know, we were able to get
(06:54):
a lead there and probably limited some of the carries
in the second half, and that the way that the
game un fold did. But I think early in the
ability for our offense to possess the ball, you know,
we'll have to do everything we did in that game
and then some too, you know, try to neutralize him
(07:15):
in the run game.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
I've enjoyed more has been to coach Mac Hollins this season.
Speaker 1 (07:19):
What's he meant? This team brings a great spirit to
work every day. It's a great teammate. Actually showed a
clip you know, from the first game on a kickoff
coverage and maxed over there excited and not going in
the game. But he's into it somebody made a tackle
and Max the first one cheering on the sidelines, And
(07:42):
those are the little things that that mean a lot,
I think to me. So again, we we asked him
to do a lot of different things, and I think
just the spirit that he brings to work and the
teammate that he is. Believe the buildings bought me in
protection to win the bigest rates in the league. What
allows him to live in the world. And also how
do you weigh the bats between wanted to play coverage
(08:03):
and rushing against that kind of study. I mean, I
think with a quarterback and again you bring six and
they block five quarterbacks got the sixth one, so he
pump fakes them or spins or stiff arms him. You know,
I think Josh has a good ability to know when
(08:26):
he's hot or no, you know, where he needs to
go with football. And you know, even if it's a
four man rush, I don't think he ever really panics
and he's able to extend or just find where he
wants to go with football and when they do get
five out. So and then the other question was what
(08:50):
did you ask me about when do we need to
pressure and when we decide to that just again, we
have to mix it up. I think you just have to, huh,
you know, pick and choose your spots. In the end,
you want to be sound and everything that you do,
you know, you don't want to just leave it up
(09:10):
to chance and hope that he's not going to find somebody.
You want to make sure that everybody's covered or that
zones are accounted for, and that you know, the rush
lanes are sound and that you have an ability to
you know, defend and you can't be cautious, but you
have to, you know, be sound. I think, like your
time in the.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
League, what common allies have you seen that the rivalries
you've participated in the DC? Any of those elements possibly
here with Buffalos?
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Mmm, I just got here. So and again I know
that they've won the division five years in a row.
I don't think there's really much of a rivalry for
those years. Maybe not, I don't know. I wasn't paying
any attention to it. I'm just focused on a very
good football team that you know is used to winning,
and they're determined and they're resilient, and you know, we'll
(10:04):
have to be at our best.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
So you can mentioned South roughly, it's whether you're blitzing
or not. And how important is it this week against
Allen to try to keep him in the pocket?
Speaker 1 (10:13):
Keeping well, you keep me in the pocket, and he's
just going to stand there and wait for somebody to uncover.
So you know what I mean Again, that's there's I mean,
you keep me in the pocket. You can stand there
and we can we can all just stand there and
he'll do you know, he'll do this, and I mean
you have to just again, coordinated and relentless is probably
(10:35):
the best way to phrase it. And because again you say,
we'll keep me in the pocket, and then guys are
just standing there and they're cautious, and we don't want
to we want to coach that way. We want to
make sure that we're trying to remain aggressive but certainly sound.
And you know, when he does extend, then we're going
(10:58):
to need a plaster and you know, have guys, you know,
be able to come up and help us.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
How do you feel about the offense's ability to improve
some of the short yardage and red zone issues that
have crop the last few weeks?
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Or feel good? Feel good like I do about everything
that we're trying to coach and improve and you know,
there's things that we've done really well, there's things that
we've done okay. You know, so again, whatever situation it
is that comes up, will have to be prepared for
it and be able to extend drives no matter what
(11:35):
the down and distance is. And I think most importantly
you have a understanding of how critical the red zone
is when you get down there, and that everything that
we've been preaching and talking about will have to continue
to execute and make sure that we're doing everything we
can to get touchdowns and the difference that that makes
(11:58):
and post ball games and force them to kickfield goals.
The same thing can be said defensively. So I think
we were both two for four last game, and you
know again that in a close game, that's about what
it turned out to be. We made a kick at
the end. And so if we can try to get
him to kickfield goals or attemp field goals, and we'll
(12:21):
have to try to do everything we can to score touchdowns.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Like Joe Brady the way he calls the game, obviously
they're confident the run game, and Josh, do you see
them as more but game plan we tweak offense or
kind of do what we do Operation.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
I mean, I think there's elements of both. I think
that they have their stuff that's staple, that they dress
up a little bit, and they have the sometimes some
game plan plays that that show up and that they
find great ways to disguise and give it a different presentation.
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Thanks Mine
I guess Karen, just before you know, I just want
to send anything we can well wishes to Kevin and
Letitia Faalk. Obviously we're all heartbroken. Kevin was a teammate.
He's a huge part of this legacy here, this football team,
and you know the impact that he made and here
(00:24):
and coaching in college and how much he loved LSU.
And I'm sure that they there's no words to describe
what they're going through, but just wanted to make sure
that everybody knows that we care deeply about Kevin and
his family and our thoughts and our prayers are with them.
So obviously a tough time for that, but we have to,
(00:45):
you know, prepare here. I appreciate, thank you. Given the
stakes of the atmosphere, the opponent win or lose, do
you see this game as kind of being the valuable
preps for apply ahead assume they need. Well, I hope
that everything we do, we only have seventeen opportunities, right,
(01:06):
so that all of that has to be valuable. Prep
you know, they all they all count the same at
the end. You know, this is a great stage that
we put ourselves on and that's exciting, but obviously hopefully
we've been able to draw from from different opportunities that
(01:27):
we've had to help us. And so what we're focused
on is is the previous opportunities that can help us
this week, and then whatever we're able to learn from
the game on Sunday going forward to help us the
next week. That's what we're trying to do, Like what
are some of the challenges that the second meeting, and
then in a vision that you've seen over the years,
(01:51):
they've they've changed, they've continued to evolve, and you know,
they've continued to improve. You know, we talked about the
respect that we have for them as a as a
football team, players and coaches, and just draw on some
games here in the past. I mean it's twenty to ten.
(02:13):
In our game, they didn't bat an eye. They came
back and tied it in the fourth quarter. We were
up two scores in the fourth quarter. You know, we
needed our best execution and kick to win it. Well,
it was the Tampa Bay game, you know, being down
and then winning the game going away, Pittsburgh down seven
(02:33):
to three, and then really just played tremendous football in
the second half, and then last week to score game
with eight minutes to go in the fourth quarter, So
never any panic over there. That's a veteran team. They're
familiar with their program. So however the game unfolds, it'll
we'll have to do everything that we can to to
(02:55):
play the entire fourth quarters or then some if we
need to. Buffalo was challenged all across the board. But
in terms of their offense, how important did Josh allen
is tight end part of that offense? I think that's grown.
I think that you know, I mean, you can see
when Ken Kid's back out there, the the matchup and
(03:16):
his skill set in the passing game, you know, great
speed and athleticism, catch radius, very quarterback friendly. Obviously, Dawson
does a little bit of both, and Hawes has just
you know, been able to really I would say, not
(03:37):
only neutralized, but moved the line of scrimmage on his responsibilities.
And I think they just continued to evolve in that
regard and using you know, all three of those guys,
like the people in Las Vegas, have you guys as underdogs,
sundown the people ben there you go are there called
(04:00):
odds makers not people. There's a lot of people in
Las Vegas like they only it's only a few of
them that they trust to set the line. So do
you pay attention to that? I mean, do you notice that? No,
I mean again it gets brought to attention. I don't
think that, you know, I mean it's every week you see,
(04:23):
you know in this league that records really don't mean anything,
and you know, the point spreads and survivor pools get
blown up every week and all that other stuff. So
we're just trying to focus on our preparation here and
get back into it. You know, had a good day Monday,
excited about the meetings thus far today and then you
(04:46):
know progress through the week we've built in both.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Being out for the last couple of games.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
What do you see the group of Jnsters is a
big guys like Corymeric Yeah, and I think Corey's continue
to improve and play a lot of football for us
and Eric's you know, taking the opportunities on Thursdays that
we've had and those competitive practices to get better and
to get better. And you know, again we'll need everybody
(05:11):
up front how important the ability to stop the run
is this week, and you know that's just a large
part of what they do. They have a lot of
confidence in it. Not the only thing that they do.
They do a lot of things well, but you know,
certainly they're going to run it until you stop them,
and then they're going to have everything off of it.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
Like going on I think Josh Allen's long touchdown round
last week, Son's defensive back who's still covering a wide receiver,
Josh Allen's goning to get into the end zone. And
I'm just thinking on the perfect example why you don't
want to play man against Alan? Does he remove things
that you can do defensively because of this versupport?
Speaker 1 (05:49):
Well, you just have to Again, I don't think you
can sit in any one thing. And certainly there's situations
where you have to play man in this league and
you have to be on body, But then again there's
other things that then have to account When you have
an athletic quarterback, you know, how are you going to
account for the extra gap or the ability to scramble,
(06:11):
uh to extend plays and all those different things. So
I don't think that there's one particular coverage or defense
or blitz that you can sit there and be in
the entire game. I think it's about picking the opportunities
and then you know when you get an opportunity to
make a play on him, you've got to do everything
that you can to, you know, to get him on
(06:33):
the ground and not jump when he pumped fakes or
fall down when he steff arms here or anything else
he applied when you were you held kustonton your fifty
rushing yards. I'm just curious when you look up at
that film. What allowed the defense to be in limiting
that run game. Well, I mean, I think the way
that we got you know, we were able to get
(06:54):
a lead there and probably limited some of the carries
in the second half, and that the way that the
game un fold did. But I think early in the
ability for our offense to possess the ball, you know,
we'll have to do everything we did in that game
and then some too, you know, try to neutralize him
(07:15):
in the run game.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
I've enjoyed more has been to coach Mac Hollins this season.
Speaker 1 (07:19):
What's he meant? This team brings a great spirit to
work every day. It's a great teammate. Actually showed a
clip you know, from the first game on a kickoff
coverage and maxed over there excited and not going in
the game. But he's into it somebody made a tackle
and Max the first one cheering on the sidelines, And
(07:42):
those are the little things that that mean a lot,
I think to me. So again, we we asked him
to do a lot of different things, and I think
just the spirit that he brings to work and the
teammate that he is. Believe the buildings bought me in
protection to win the bigest rates in the league. What
allows him to live in the world. And also how
do you weigh the bats between wanted to play coverage
(08:03):
and rushing against that kind of study. I mean, I
think with a quarterback and again you bring six and
they block five quarterbacks got the sixth one, so he
pump fakes them or spins or stiff arms him. You know,
I think Josh has a good ability to know when
(08:26):
he's hot or no, you know, where he needs to
go with football. And you know, even if it's a
four man rush, I don't think he ever really panics
and he's able to extend or just find where he
wants to go with football and when they do get
five out. So and then the other question was what
(08:50):
did you ask me about when do we need to
pressure and when we decide to that just again, we
have to mix it up. I think you just have to, huh,
you know, pick and choose your spots. In the end,
you want to be sound and everything that you do,
you know, you don't want to just leave it up
(09:10):
to chance and hope that he's not going to find somebody.
You want to make sure that everybody's covered or that
zones are accounted for, and that you know, the rush
lanes are sound and that you have an ability to
you know, defend and you can't be cautious, but you
have to, you know, be sound. I think, like your
time in the.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
League, what common allies have you seen that the rivalries
you've participated in the DC? Any of those elements possibly
here with Buffalos?
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Mmm, I just got here. So and again I know
that they've won the division five years in a row.
I don't think there's really much of a rivalry for
those years. Maybe not, I don't know. I wasn't paying
any attention to it. I'm just focused on a very
good football team that you know is used to winning,
and they're determined and they're resilient, and you know, we'll
(10:04):
have to be at our best.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
So you can mentioned South roughly, it's whether you're blitzing
or not. And how important is it this week against
Allen to try to keep him in the pocket?
Speaker 1 (10:13):
Keeping well, you keep me in the pocket, and he's
just going to stand there and wait for somebody to uncover.
So you know what I mean Again, that's there's I mean,
you keep me in the pocket. You can stand there
and we can we can all just stand there and
he'll do you know, he'll do this, and I mean
you have to just again, coordinated and relentless is probably
(10:35):
the best way to phrase it. And because again you say,
we'll keep me in the pocket, and then guys are
just standing there and they're cautious, and we don't want
to we want to coach that way. We want to
make sure that we're trying to remain aggressive but certainly sound.
And you know, when he does extend, then we're going
(10:58):
to need a plaster and you know, have guys, you know,
be able to come up and help us.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
How do you feel about the offense's ability to improve
some of the short yardage and red zone issues that
have crop the last few weeks?
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Or feel good? Feel good like I do about everything
that we're trying to coach and improve and you know,
there's things that we've done really well, there's things that
we've done okay. You know, so again, whatever situation it
is that comes up, will have to be prepared for
it and be able to extend drives no matter what
(11:35):
the down and distance is. And I think most importantly
you have a understanding of how critical the red zone
is when you get down there, and that everything that
we've been preaching and talking about will have to continue
to execute and make sure that we're doing everything we
can to get touchdowns and the difference that that makes
(11:58):
and post ball games and force them to kickfield goals.
The same thing can be said defensively. So I think
we were both two for four last game, and you
know again that in a close game, that's about what
it turned out to be. We made a kick at
the end. And so if we can try to get
him to kickfield goals or attemp field goals, and we'll
(12:21):
have to try to do everything we can to score touchdowns.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Like Joe Brady the way he calls the game, obviously
they're confident the run game, and Josh, do you see
them as more but game plan we tweak offense or
kind of do what we do Operation.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
I mean, I think there's elements of both. I think
that they have their stuff that's staple, that they dress
up a little bit, and they have the sometimes some
game plan plays that that show up and that they
find great ways to disguise and give it a different presentation.
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Thanks Mine
Popular Podcasts
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by Audiochuck Media Company.
The Brothers Ortiz
The Brothers Ortiz is the story of two brothers–both successful, but in very different ways. Gabe Ortiz becomes a third-highest ranking officer in all of Texas while his younger brother Larry climbs the ranks in Puro Tango Blast, a notorious Texas Prison gang. Gabe doesn’t know all the details of his brother’s nefarious dealings, and he’s made a point not to ask, to protect their relationship. But when Larry is murdered during a home invasion in a rented beach house, Gabe has no choice but to look into what happened that night. To solve Larry’s murder, Gabe, and the whole Ortiz family, must ask each other tough questions.