Vrabel is everything Mayo thinks he is
Jerod Mayo is full of shit. If you think differently or don’t believe me I have a season full of media gaffs to show you. Oh and what would have been the worst statistical season on record for the Patriots if not for the final fuck up in the coffin losing the number one over all pick so they could win their fourth game of the season against a Bills’ team actively shoving it up your rectum.
Mayo was brought in to rebuild a culture. A culture that had gone sideway under Bill Belichick because he was too mean. That’s nonsense. Bill Belichick’s culture fell apart because he’s arrogant not mean. That’s another story. Mayo was supposed to bring unity and cohesion. Very little of his football IQ was discussed. But, okay fine. Let’s build a culture. How? With Corporate goobly gook and positive vibes only brah. “It starts in the locker room”. “We have to make them men before treating them like football players”. Blah, blah, blah. We’ve seen that shit fail time and time again. Do you know what people respect? All people? Even “little boy” football players? Not being fed a bunch of bullshit. And that’s all Mayo had.
Look, Mayo played in the NFL and was very successful. Obviously he knows the game. That doesn’t always translate to coaching. It 100% does not translate to coaching when you are not applying that knowledge. When you’re replacing it with catch phrases and vibes. Maybe Mayo will learn from it and realize, less bullshit next time. It generally takes a season and a half or so for players to bail on a coach like that, so good on the Kraft’s and more so the fans making the Kraft’s pull the trigger. Because everything they thought we could get in Mayo, they are getting in Vrabel.
Athletic – Chad Graff
Mike Vrabel - Those who know him best describe him — in the nicest way possible — as an “empathic a–hole.”
In warmups before a 2012 game against rival Michigan, Vrabel head-butted a helmet-wearing Buckeyes player. He coached that day with a bloody, stitched-up forehead. The players loved him for his intensity — and because he looked out for them.
“He probably didn’t make any money at Ohio State,” Streicher said. “He took care of his players like nobody else. They would, to a man, say that he was not only a great coach, but also like a father figure or a best friend.”
“Some people would say, well, there’s an arrogance to him. But there’s a humility that you might not see because of the way he comes off, his confidence level and his ability to speak,” Fickell said. “He understands that you get what you deserve and you get what you earn, no matter whether you’ve played for two years or 14.”
Hardo? Sure. Prick? Sure. Knows what he’s talking about. Pushes when he needs to, understands when not to, puts his players in positions to be successful? Yup. It’s called being genuine. Mayo lacked that because like all of us corporate hacks, he was faking it for as long as he could. Kudus for the shrill corporate behavior stealing your bosses job based on nothing but opportune timing and charisma. I’ll take the real football coach now, thank you.
The on-field buy-in started early in his first season. In Week 1, the Titans lost starting quarterback Marcus Mariota, both offensive tackles (Taylor Lewan and Jack Conklin) and star tight end Delanie Walker to injuries. Heading into Week 2 — a game against Houston and O’Brien, his old boss — the Titans were outmanned. But Vrabel laid out exactly how the Titans would win:
Run the ball 30 times.
Hold them to 17 points or fewer.
Force two turnovers — or win the turnover battle.The Titans needed to hit two of those marks, Vrabel said. They incorporated some “Wildcat” runs with Henry and ran a successful fake punt with safety Kevin Byard throwing to safety Dane Cruikshank for a touchdown. They ran the ball 34 times. They held the Texans to 17 points. They forced one turnover and didn’t turn the ball over themselves. They won 20-17.
Holy shit! What a novel concept. Actually put a game plan with objectives to hit based on scouting, experience, fil study, etc? And it worked because you know what you’re doing? And that got buy in from the team? Not telling them they were little boys about to be men. And we will run and stop the run? Wow. That’s some crazy shit.
You can tell from all of the reports flooding in from ex players to coaches, including the bevy he’s bring back to work with him. Some who are moving laterally from other organizations to get back in the Vrabel tree. You can tell Vrabel gets it. He understands the things Mayo waxed poetic about. They are called relationships. They are important, but not the end all be all. It’s about freaking football man. Pushing and getting the most out of people through knowledge, skill, and being genuine. Take what Vrabel had to say about his new DC.
The respect I have for him, the way that he goes about his business, the way he treats people, the way he treats coaches and players, he has a great grasp of it,” Vrabel told The Athletic’s Zack Rosenblatt in November. “He got along and had relationships with offensive coaches, special teams coaches, defensive coaches. He knows what he believes. He’s a good football coach, a great husband, great father.
- “I relied on Big T a lot to help me on guys that I couldn’t reach or I was having trouble with or he had a better relationship with than I did. He cared about the team. It wasn’t like he just cared about the D-line.”
I just don’t smell any bullshit here and damn is it refreshing.