Super Bowl 2026: How New England Patriots were rewarded for 'ruthless' Mike Vrabel hire with Super Bowl transformation
Watch the New England Patriots against the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl 60 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California on Sunday February 8, with coverage under way at 10pm live on Sky Spots NFL ahead of kick-off at approximately 11.30pm
Monday 26 January 2026 19:06, UK
Mike Vrabel as New England Patriots head coach always felt a natural, perhaps inevitable fit. If not at first, then certainly eventually.
Vrabel, who won three Super Bowls as a player with the Patriots, was appointed head coach this past offseason to replace the one-and-done Jerod Mayo, who had been promoted from his post as inside linebackers coach as a supposed long-term successor to Bill Belichick.
"Sometimes you don't pull the trigger on those things," said Sky Sports NFL's Neil Reynolds. "They had a bad season last year. Jerod Mayo grew up inside that Patriots building, it cannot have been easy to get rid of him, but Vrabel became available."
Mayo had developed and been cultivated within the Patriots system, deemed one of football's brightest defensive minds and a Belichick protégé who could lead the franchise into a new era of contention armed with his own interpretations to the structure that had inspired one of the NFL's greatest dynasties.
His first and only campaign would end 4-13, owner Robert Kraft deciding to move in a different direction and firing Mayo while facing the financial burden of still paying for his contract as well as that of several assistant coaches. In came Vrabel. Back came Super Bowl contention.
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"I think the Patriots knew if they didn't get Vrabel then, he's going to get another job," added Reynolds. "He's going to be somewhere else for five years, and there's another window missed.
"The Patriots were ruthless, but they were opportunistic, and they got their man."
Vrabel was fired as head coach of the Tennessee Titans at the end of the 2023 season in what was deemed one of the shock decisions of the annual hiring cycle. He was not hired to another head coaching role and instead spent 2024 as a coaching and personnel consultant with the Cleveland Browns.
Come January 2025, there was only one man primed to head to Foxboro.
In just his first season Vrabel has led the Patriots to a 14-3 record, their first AFC East divisional title since 2019 and a 12th Super Bowl appearance following back-to-back 4-13 seasons.
"Ruthlessness has kind of been part of the Patriot DNA for a long time," said Sky Sports NFL's Jeff Reinebold.
"You think about Drew Bledsoe, Ty Law, Willie McGinest, they've gotten rid of great players when they felt like it was time to go. And they did that with Jerod Mayo. And this is what great organisations do.
"When you have a chance to upgrade yourself, whether that's a player, a coach, it doesn't matter. You have to make the move and go out and get better, because better is better, and it is a competitive environment that you live in day to day."
The Patriots battled the gruelling snowy elements at Mile High to book their return to the Super Bowl with a 10-7 victory over the Denver Broncos in Sunday's AFC Championship Game.
Speaking post-game, Vrabel was insistent that if the Patriots were to beat the Seattle Seahawks at Super Bowl 60, it would be down to his players and not him.
"He's just saying the right things and being modest, but it will be about him. He's a major part of this turnaround," said Reynolds.
"It's one thing to take a team from four or five wins to win a division. To take a four-win team to the Super Bowl, it's reminiscent of when the dynasty began in New England."
Reinebold added: "If he's not Coach of the Year, and there have been some great coaching jobs this year like Liam Coen in Jacksonville, but if he's not Coach of the Year I think it's a travesty because Mike Vrabel has redefined who the Patriots are."
Vrabel's influence, along with that of offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, has unearthed a long-term answer at quarterback in the form of second-year Drake Maye, who has played his way into MVP candidacy.
He was limited to just 86 passing yards in the snow on Sunday as the Patriots leaned on their defense to blunt quarterback Jarrett Stidham and the Broncos running game.
"New England's defense has given up 26 points now in three playoff games," said Reynolds. "Three against the Chargers, 16 against Houston, but in that game they took the ball away five times, and then seven against Denver.
"So are they a really good defense, or were the last two weather games beneficial to them? I'm thinking about that because they're going to go up against the Seattle attack and they're going to put points on the board."
The Patriots forced two turnovers against the Broncos to lift their tally of takeaways to eight during the postseason, which includes four interceptions of Houston Texans quarterback CJ Stroud.
Awaiting them is the comeback story of Sam Darnold, who was turnover-free in a clinical performance to lead the Seahawks past the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship Game.
"They create turnovers," said Reinebold. "I think it's almost unanimous through the playoffs that if you turn the ball over more than your opponent, you're going to lose the football game."
Watch the New England Patriots against the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl 60 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California on Sunday February 8, with coverage under way at 10pm live on Sky Spots NFL ahead of kick-off at approximately 11.30pm.
