The New England Patriots held 11 picks entering the 2026 NFL Draft. At the start of the second round, seven of them were scheduled for Rounds 4-7.<\/p>\n
Head coach Mike Vrabel will not be with the team for Day 3, on April 25, as he \u201cbegins to seek counseling\u201d and spends time with his family amid the public drama involving himself and former Athletic NFL reporter Dianna Russini<\/a>. After the New York Post published photos April 7 of the two at a private Arizona resort \u2013 one photo showed the two interlocking fingers and another featured them hugging on a rooftop \u2013 the outlet\u2019s \u201cPage Six\u201d column<\/a> released more purporting to show photos of the two at a New York bar in March 2020.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n \u201cThe stability of him as a person, some of the leadership, some of the presence,\u201d Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf said when asked about what the organization will be missing without Vrabel in the draft war room.<\/p>\n The final day of the draft is also vital in securing a team\u2019s desired undrafted free agent class.<\/p>\n \u201cHe does a nice job with the undrafted players for us, obviously he\u2019s a tremendous recruiter, so maybe that\u2019s something that we\u2019ll be missing,\u201d Wolf said. \u201cBut again, we\u2019re very confident with the people that we have, with the process. The assistant coaches have done a tremendous job, as have the scouts, preparing for day three. And we\u2019re excited about it.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n From Jarrett Bell: Still laughing, Mike Vrabel? Patriots coach torches credibility as scandal grows | Opinion<\/a><\/p>\n Vrabel addressed reporters on April 21 and April 23. During the second news conference \u2013 Vrabel only took four questions after issuing a statement less than three minutes long two days earlier \u2013 the 2025 Coach of the Year confirmed he would not be with the team Saturday<\/a>.<\/p>\n “My priorities are my family and this football team \u2013 in that order. And there is a balance there that I am going to create,” Vrabel said. “My family needs me this weekend, and that’s where I’ll be.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n The Patriots issued a statement of support concerning Vrabel\u2019s decision to seek counseling and prioritize his family \u2013 but the team did not acknowledge the new batch of photos. Wolf referred to the statement while saying they are not \u201ctoo worried\u201d about Vrabel\u2019s absence.<\/p>\n \u201cAs far as the work is concerned on Saturday, not too worried about that, just as far as the process that we have in place, the people we have in place,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s gonna be different without his presence there, but we feel really good about the people that we have in place to make up for it.\u201d<\/p>\n