The schedule release is done and dusted, offseason workouts are underway, and a much-speculated trade about a star wide receiver will not happen for two more weeks. Needless to say, we have reached a bit of a quieter time on the NFL calendar.<\/p>\n
That said, there is still plenty to talk about. So, in order to clean out the notebook from the week that was, here is the latest edition of our Sunday Patriots Notes.<\/p>\n
Mike Vrabel\u2019s consistency<\/p>\n
Even though he had led his team to a Super Bowl in his first season and was named NFL Coach of the Year, Mike Vrabel has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons this offseason. The photos that were taken of him and NFL reporter Dianna Russini at an adults-only resort in Arizona earlier this year proved to be a distraction, to a point where Vrabel missed the third day of the draft to undergo counseling.<\/p>\n
Through it all, there was speculation about his future with the club. Even though the league is not considering any discipline under its personal conduct policy, the matter impacting Vrabel\u2019s job performance \u2014 i.e. him missing parts of the draft \u2014 looked like a potential breaking point.<\/p>\n
However, inside the building nothing has changed. While Vrabel did address the team on the issue and appeared a bit all over the place in his immediate response, he has since settled back into his usual role.<\/p>\n
Safety Kevin Byard also said as much this week.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019s just very consistent with his coaching style,\u201d Byard explained. \u201cEven today, they\u2019re doing some special teams, punt drills and he\u2019s the loudest voice on the field. Just coaching the guys, making sure guys\u2019 technique is good. But at the same time, still praising them when they do very well. It\u2019s not like he\u2019s just MF-ing guys or anything like that.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then obviously, as we get into our competition stuff at the end, pushing sleds, he\u2019s out there front and center, yelling and things like that. So, no, he\u2019s definitely the same guy that I recognized since Tennessee.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even players who, unlike Byard, did not previously work with Vrabel got what was promised to them.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had a few other options, but ultimately I wanted to come here because Coach Vrabel,\u201d said linebacker K.J. Britt, who arrived from the Dolphins in free agency. \u201cPlayed this game, knows the ins and outs of this game. There\u2019s a lot of stuff that y\u2019all don\u2019t know, that we know, that goes on behind closed doors. Once you got somebody who you could relate with, who\u2019s been through this, that\u2019s what you want to be around.\u201d<\/p>\n
Byard, meanwhile, previously worked with Vrabel in Tennessee. After joining the Patriots back in March, the first-team All-Pro continues to see a coach who has an ability to rally players behind him and have them buy into his message.<\/p>\n
Off-field scandals and speculation be damned.<\/p>\n
\u201cEspecially when you\u2019re a young player in this league and you come into this organization, a guy like Mike Vrabel who\u2019s played in this league for a long time, has success, Pro Bowls, All-Pros, won Super Bowls. So, when a guy like that gets in front of the room he commands the room, he commands attention,\u201d Byard said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s coaching his technique or telling your effort and finish, or all the things he talks about. It\u2019s very easy to buy in because he\u2019s done it at a high level. I think for any of us players, you want to be coached by somebody that\u2019s going to connect with you as well on a personal level. Because I think that\u2019s what coaching is about; when you are trying to connect with people on that personal level, people want to know that you actually care about them, you want to get to know them. \u2026 I think it makes it very easy for you to want to be able to play for a guy like that, and I think that\u2019s one thing that Mike does well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Craig Woodson\u2019s maturity<\/p>\n
No player on the Patriots\u2019 defensive roster played more snaps in 2025 than Craig Woodson, a remarkable achievement for any rookie, let alone one selected on Day 3 of the draft. However, the fourth-round pick never looked back after becoming a defensive cornerstone during his first training camp.<\/p>\n
Now off to his sophomore campaign, Woodson is bound to keep building his role \u2014 something new arrival Mike Brown is already seeing.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe doesn\u2019t carry himself like he was a rookie last year,\u201d Brown said about his fellow safety. \u201cHe\u2019s very mature, goes about his business. I can tell he knows what he\u2019s doing. He cares about what he\u2019s doing as well. Good impression of him so far. Great player.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Patriots released a new episode of their Forged in Foxborough series this week, and it features a segment about area scout Landon Simpson describing first-round draft pick Caleb Lomu.<\/p>\n
\u201cFirst off, I thought he had a great interview,\u201d Simpson said in the brief clip filmed at the Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. \u201cCame in with the right energy. Made of the right stuff. Certainly got the wiring to be a pro at this level.<\/p>\n
\u201cBiggest thing about him is he\u2019s a real big guy. Got massive hands, heavy hands, but he moves well; he\u2019s nimble on his feet, has some quickness working side to side. Like his ability in pass pro to anchor. He\u2019s able to drop his weight and hold firm. In the run game, he needs to be a little bit of a mauler, but I think he plays with some instincts and awareness for everything around him. He\u2019ll put his hands on people and he\u2019s not afraid to finish. And I think he\u2019s a smart dude.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Patriots traded up from the 31st to the 28th position in this year\u2019s draft to select Lomu. He projects as a third offensive tackle his rookie season and potential candidate to eventually replace veteran Morgan Moses in the starting lineup.<\/p>\n
In an effort to rebuild their tight end group behind team captain Hunter Henry, the Patriots signed free agent Julian Hill to a three-year, $7.5 million deal. Outside of his potential as a blocker, it is clear to see why the team was drawn to him: he describes himself as a \u201cput down your head and work\u201d type of player.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople talk about culture guys,\u201d he explained this week. \u201cI\u2019m a guy, when you tell me to do something, that\u2019s my focus and I\u2019m going to do it. So, if they say, \u2018We need you to catch five more passes this year, block this guy\u2018 \u2014 whatever it is, I\u2019m going to do it …<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the end of the day, whatever they need from me, I\u2019m going to do it. I\u2019m going work hard to do it. Win, succeed, fail, lose, whatever it is, that\u2019s my focus.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Patriots\u2019 2024 season under one-and-done head coach Jerod Mayo would largely have been a forgettable affair if not for the fact that it was Drake Maye\u2019s rookie campaign. And despite his and his team\u2019s struggles en route to a 4-13 record, the young quarterback produced some memorable moments.<\/p>\n
One of those came in an eventual overtime loss to the Titans \u2014 a play that haunted Tennessee\u2019s defense new Patriots safety Mike Brown revealed.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy teammates in Tennessee, we talked about that play all the time, how long we ran around,\u201d Brown explained. \u201cAnd I ended up just blitzing out of the deep half because my guy got pushed out of bounds, and the guy caught it too. That was a crazy play.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGreat player,\u201d Brown added when talking about Maye. \u201cIt was tough scouting against him as well. But just seeing him \u2014 I\u2019m not around him as much because we always split offense and defense \u2014 but the type of leader he is, and he just puts his head down andI work. I speak to him around the building, but just like the way he works. That\u2019s all I can see right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nancy Meier riding into the sunset<\/p>\n
Nancy Meier\u2019s 52-year run with the Patriots found its end this week. The team officially celebrated her contributions on Monday.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been amazing,\u201d Meier told<\/a> WBZ-TV. \u201cI say it\u2019s what other people call NFL dreams. But I fulfilled what everyone else wants to do. Because of players, and because of coaches, and because of owners, and because of all these people around me, I have this, I have jewelry, and I\u2019ve been to parties, I\u2019ve been to the White House. I\u2019ve done everything, and in a very normal way, because we\u2019ve done it more than once.\u201d<\/p>\n