Mike Vrabel Reveals 3 ‘Objectives’ For Successful Patriots Camp

Mike Vrabel is setting realistic goals as the new-look Patriots enter training camp on the ground floor.

Vrabel, who was hired to replace head coach Jerod Mayo after an abysmal season in 2024, might not be a new face in New England., but is in a new role with the organization. He’s at the helm of a rebuilding program with new faces serving in new roles.

With that, Vrabel outlined three “objectives” that will go a long way in determining whether it was a successful camp.

“I think our objectives that we’re going to talk to them about and have talked to them about is, it’s time to build a team,” Vrabel told reporters during his pre-training camp press conference at Gillette Stadium on Tuesday, per a team-provided transcript. “We have to start coming together as a football team. The groups that we’re going to use, the special teams unit, the different personnel grouping on offense and on defense, that all has to come together, and that has to happen.

“The other thing is they have to earn a role, and that’s a great time for them to personally earn a role through training camp, is what they can do for the team, how they can help us, how they can help themselves. There’s a lot of different levels to what those roles are, and in my 14-year career I’ve had plenty of them: from special teams, multiple-position backup, to starter, a starter that was expected to be productive, to a veteran leader. So, there’s multiple levels of what that role will be, and it’s up to them to earn it. Then obviously, we have to prepare to win, and that will be my job as we work through training camp to make sure that we’re doing all those three things.”

Vrabel reflected on those points as the Patriots took the field for Day 1 of training camp Wednesday.

“If we can do those things, there’s a reason I try to do this, I don’t claim to be the smartest person, so if I can just try to find some things that I think are important for the team, and the individual, and then kind of coming back to the team,” Vrabel said. “So, that’s what would be successful.”

Vrabel believes Patriots players did a good job carrying over what they accomplished in mandatory minicamp to training camp. The physical portion resulted in high marks across the board, though Vrabel knows that’s different than play speed and endurance.

The Patriots will be back on the practice fields for Day 2 of training camp Thursday.