Vrabel also discussed his mentality at having a second chance to be an NFL head coach. Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel was back in the swing of things on Monday morning after his team was idle on Sunday (having already achieved a Week 11 win against the Jets on Thursday). Vrabel, now leading a team that has a 9-2 record and a share of the top spot in the AFC, told WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” that he wants to avoid seeing any additional lapses from the Patriots down the stretch. “No naps. That’s what we’re going to start talking about,” he said in the weekly radio interview. “We don’t want to take any naps, and have any days off.” Over the weekend, New England’s roster was able to get some rest. Vrabel said he still kept an eye on games, checking at various points on the Steelers-Bengals matchup, as well as Broncos-Chiefs and Eagles-Lions. He admitted running into a relatable problem in 2025: Dealing with the proliferation of multiview television options, and the chaos of trying to watch four football games at once. “We went back and forth between the old four-screen, the old four-square, and the single one,” he said of his TV screens. “It’s hard, you know what I mean? Everybody yells and you don’t know which screen you’re watching at, and which screen you’re yelling at.” This coming Sunday, Vrabel’s team will be back on the field. The Patriots will face the Bengals, heading to Cincinnati for a 1 p. m. kickoff. Looking ahead to the matchup, he said that minus Milton Williams (recently added to the Injured Reserve), several players who have been out are expected to be back at practice after the rest. “Hopefully. I expect to see them at practice today,” Vrabel said of those who appeared on the Week 11 injury report. “So once they get through that we’ll move on to Wednesday and see how they progress through the week.” Here are a few other topics Vrabel discussed: Dealing with the “fools gold” label Despite the 9-2 record and ongoing eight-game winning streak, the Patriots have not been without their share of critics. Some have dismissed New England’s achievements based on the quality (or perceived lack thereof) of the opponents on the Patriots’ schedule. Notably, the list of critics includes former Patriots quarterback Cam Newton. “It has fool’s gold written all over them,” Newton said of New England during a recent “First Take” appearance on ESPN. “The thing I have a problem with is if you keep playing sorry scrubs, then you’re going to have this falsetto of a mentality going into the playoffs and it has one-and-done written all over it.” Vrabel was queried for his response to the comments, and if he thinks it’s weird that his seemingly successful team still not being taken as seriously as other contenders. “Nothing’s weird to me, because anybody can [go] on the radio or TV, you know what I mean?” said Vrabel. “It’s just [saying] things that get their attention. We are OK with that. I promise you, we were OK with it. Anything that anybody says, we’re going to come to work. We’re going to focus on us. We’re going to try to improve, and focus on the Bengals and going on the road, trying to get our 10th win. That’s all we’re going to focus on. Adding that “nothing is offensive” about the comments directed at his team, Vrabel also dismissed the method (sometimes used by his old coach, Bill Belichick) of putting Newton’s comments up in front of the team as “bulletin board material” to motivate players. “No, I mean what are we going to put Cam Newton clips up there?” Vrabel asked. “No, we’d rather put our clips or the Bengals’ clips [up there]. I don’t think that’s even remotely close to how we should try to inspire our players to play better.” Learning from the past An interesting moment in the interview arrived Vrabel was asked what he learned from his first opportunity to be a head coach in the NFL (spending six years with the Titans). Despite leading Tennessee to a 54-45 record, Vrabel was fired in early 2024. In his response, Vrabel mostly took the perspective of players who frequently go through the same process. “Just try to enjoy it, try to enjoy what we do, and where we do it, and who we get to do it with,” he said of his second go-around as an NFL coach. “I’ve had players that have been released before, and you get them and they know what that feels like to have been cut, and they don’t want to feel that again. “So they do everything they possibly can to not let that happen,” Vrabel added. “Maybe they don’t take things for granted, and certainly being let go, or fired, or cut, whatever you want to call it, you don’t want to ever let that happen again, and try to take advantage of the opportunity that you have.” Assessing Will Campbell’s performance Having used the fourth overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft to select left tackle Will Campbell, the pressure on the former LSU offensive lineman has been correspondingly high. The 21-year-old has largely responded well to the extra attention. Though there have been some bumps in the road even during the Patriots’ recent winning streak, Campbell has consistently been graded as one of the top rookies in his draft class. Vrabel credited Campbell’s commitment and work ethic. “I think he’s been consistent each and every day. I think he works hard,” said Vrabel of the rookie left tackle. “I think he makes adjustments quickly to the players, or the skill-set, or whatever he’s seeing. I think he’s able to adjust quickly during games, and understand what it is somebody is trying to do, and come back and combat that.”.
https://www.boston.com/sports/new-england-patriots/2025/11/17/mike-vrabel-responded-to-cam-newtons-fools-gold-assessment-of-the-patriots/
