Mike Vrabel became connected to each of the first six teams to carry a coaching vacancy this offseason, with only the Cowboys — whose official Mike McCarthy ouster came a day after Vrabel’s Patriots hire — not tied to the former Titans HC. This gave Vrabel considerable leverage in negotiations with the team he played for during most of the 2000s.
The Bears and Jets made late pushes, but the Patriots — who were connected to Vrabel before firing Jerod Mayo — were always viewed as the frontrunners. As of Sunday, it was not known if Vrabel’s leverage was enough to secure him final say on the 53-man roster in New England. De facto GM Eliot Wolf held that last year, but he might no longer wield that power.
Instead, NBC Sports Boston’s Tom Curran views Vrabel as the top decision-maker in New England now. Wolf and Vrabel met early this week, but the roles of Wolf and 2024 hire Alonzo Highsmith are being determined. The exec Vrabel wanted the Titans to name GM in 2023, Ryan Cowden, is also en route to Foxborough. Cowden may end up being the No. 2 man to Wolf in the Pats’ front office, but the Giants let him out of his contract for this opportunity. That points to a significant role for Cowden, who had been the Titans’ acting GM between the Jon Robinson firing and Ran Carthon hire.
Wolf has been with the Patriots since 2020, moving into a scouting director role in 2022. The Bill Belichick hire, once a popular GM candidate, would still stand to carry a major say in Pats personnel matters moving forward. But the arrivals of Vrabel and Cowden will undoubtedly curb his influence — perhaps by a significant degree. Wolf is believed to be tied to a four-year contract, the Boston Globe’s Ben Volin adds. How the organization proceeds with its current front office leader will be worth monitoring this offseason.
Vrabel’s power will not reach the level of Belichick’s, Curran cautions, and SI.com’s Albert Breer said (via NBC Sports Boston) the official workflow chart should feature both Vrabel and Wolf reporting to ownership. But Curran indicates Wolf will likely see less control over the Patriots’ roster compared to what he held in 2024. Considering the about-face the Patriots completed with Mayo, it is unsurprising they agreed to a Vrabel-friendly structure to help them save face after Robert Kraft had long anointed Mayo.
A desire for more control moved Vrabel onto thin ice in Tennessee, as clashes with ownership — one of which emerging after he sat with Kraft at his Patriots Hall of Fame induction during a Titans bye week in 2023 — developed during the veteran HC’s final weeks on the job. With Carthon eventually sticking around (for another year, at least), Vrabel received his walking papers after Amy Adams Strunk tired of his presence and the Titans’ downward spiral on the field. Of course, matters have worsened for the Titans — who had advanced to three straight playoff brackets from 2019-21 — since Vrabel’s Nashville departure.
This will be more of a fixer-upper than what Vrabel inherited in Tennessee. The Titans had fired Mike Mularkey after a 9-7 season that ended in the divisional round. The Patriots are coming off a 4-13 season, with win No. 4 coming only because of the Bills having secured the AFC’s No. 2 seed. In order for Vrabel to sign off on returning to New England, it certainly appears the Patriots had to provide assurances he will hold considerable say in how the roster is shaped. With a big lead in terms of projected cap space ($120MM-plus), the Pats will see that become a significant matter soon.
Vrabel interferring in personnel decisions in Tennessee got him fired. I think he’s potentially a great coach- if he just stays focused on that.
Wolf spit the bit with his first draft. He should be sidelined if they want to progress.
Can’t blame him for wanting his choice of players on the team he has to coach.
As Bill Parcells used to say, “if I’m going to cook the meal, let me shop for the groceries!”
Problem is, most coaches who “try to choose the groceries “ end up buying “spoiled products “
…they disregard “value”, “budget”, and “expiration dates.”
“Can’t blame him for wanting his choice of players on the team he has to coach.”
You can when the record of coaches also being the GM is not good, including Vrabel’s.
Sign of the times, unfortunately. I think you’ll see coaches want control more and more as we go forward.
It’s smart bringing Cowden onboard. This gives the Pats 3 guys making personnel decisions. It allows different point of views from coaching to scouting to player personnel. Now if Wolf is against Vrabel and Cowden on are their suggestions then his days are likely numbered. Personally I think it will only help the organization rather than a BB or Jerry Jones like dictatorship.
Wonder if Kraft would let Wolf interview with Jets?
Let him go ruin the Jets. He’s awful. He’d fit in well in NY.
Never give a coach personnel control. It literally never works out. They only make decisions based on short term outlook, which will cost your franchise after a few short seasons. Just look at Bill O’Brien in Houston.
BB built a dynasty lasting 20 years as both coach and GM. Sure it ended poorly, but that tends to happen when you lose a HoF qb let alone the GOAT
Disagree. There has to be some kind of balance in the relationship. The coach should be free to ask for exactly which positions and which style of player he wants. The personnel department should prepare a good shopping list of who is available at each price point, including detailed injury history. The GM should meet with the coach and explain the tradeoffs involved in signing the important candidates for each position.
The two should agree an exact plan of attack and then go to it together. If the coach and GM don’t get along and don’t see eye to eye on football, each of them should be working with a different GM/coach. They should certainly not continue in the same clubhouse. Often the GM can fire the coach, sometimes the coach can have the GM fired.
Between a great coach and a great GM, I’d take the great coach. Coaching affects all the players. A great GM with a poor coach will still lose a least nine games per season.
He never developed a quarterback in Tennessee. He’s a failure. He’s a fraud and he’ll be gone in two years and never to return to the NFL he’ll be announcing for Westwood one
What?