FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Mike Vrabel, who was officially introduced Monday as the 16th head coach in New England Patriots history, was one of the biggest reasons quarterback Drake Maye was attracted to the job. That’s what he said.
Vrabel cited May’s work as another key reason why he was convinced to come to New England, after noting how important “open dialogue” was with owner Robert Kraft and president Jonathan Kraft. He cited Maye as a “young, dynamic quarterback.”
Later, in an interview with ESPN’s “SportsCenter,” Vrabel detailed how he hopes to grow with Maye, 22.
“I think he’s young and talented and willing to learn. I think he has toughness. I think he has a great skill set to mold him and lead our football team and lead our offense.” Yes,” Vrabel said.
“He’s got the arm talent, he’s got the athleticism. Certainly, we’ve got to be great around him and we’re going to continue to push him as much as he’s going to let us.”
Vrabel, 49, also interviewed for head coaching positions with the New York Jets and Chicago Bears. He said one of his most important decisions will be hiring an offensive coordinator to work with Maye, but “that hasn’t been finalized yet.”
Asked how he plans to help May reach his potential, Vrabel said the first thing is to “put great people around him.”
“My involvement will be around game management and situational awareness and where we are on the football field and developing him as a leader on offense,” he said. “Drake is going to be his own person, but I’m going to give him some things that I think he needs to win football games.
“We’ve got to be a very efficient passing football team. If you look at what’s winning statistically in the National Football League, we’ve got to be a very efficient passing football team. Our ability to provide the quarterback and the passing game is a huge contributor to the game.” There are many ways to be successful – protecting the middle of the pocket, protecting the football, being aggressive but not reckless. I wonder if there is. ”
Maye, the No. 3 pick in the 2024 draft, started 12 games as a rookie and completed 225 of 338 for 2,276 yards, 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
The Patriots finished 4-13 last season and hold the No. 4 pick in the 2025 draft, giving them plenty of salary cap space to build a roster around Maye.
Vrabel suggested which areas to focus on.
“Certainly, when you look at a team that can protect the quarterback and dictate the flow of the game offensively, you know we’re healthy, you know we’re strong — whether it’s in free agency or in the draft. “It’s extremely important,” he said.
“D-linemen, they’re growing every year, getting more destructive, bigger, stronger. So as they’re trying to disrupt our quarterback, we do something to counteract that. must have.”
The Patriots have ranked last in pass block win percentage each of the past two seasons.
