Copyright newsweek
The New England Patriots are one of the hottest teams in football right now. After a 1-2 start to the season, the Patriots have strung together four straight victories, with sophomore quarterback Drake Maye playing some of the best football of his young career. Patriots fans were ecstatic when head coach Mike Vrabel was hired this offseason, but few believed that seven weeks into the season New England would sit atop the AFC East and rank second in the AFC. Vrabel preaches a hands-on, tough-love coaching style focused on accountability and has built a solid foundation this season with the Patriots, even drawing the eye of past legends. While appearing on the “Dudes on Dudes’ podcast earlier this week with Rob Gronkowski, Patriots legend Julian Edelman declared how he’d want to play for Vrabel. FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – SEPTEMBER 20: Julian Edelman speaks during the 2025 Hall of Fame induction ceremony at Gillette Stadium on September 20, 2025 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jaiden Tripi/Getty Images) “My initial reaction … I wanna play for Coach Vrabes,” Edelman said, in a video posted to YouTube by Dudes on Dudes. “He seems like such a great dude to play for. … In the grand scheme of things, he’s like a player-coach, but you can tell he keeps jokers accountable, and you can tell guys know that there’s a direction there that they’re going. It feels kinda (Bill) Belichickish, but with a player-type coach.” Edelman and Vrabel’s paths never crossed before while the two were in New England. The Patriots Hall of Fame wide receiver was drafted only one year after Vrabel’s last season with the team and would go on to cement himself as one of the team’s most reliable receivers ever. Vrabel has brought a culture to New England that is clearly working with the players. The toughness that the Patriots have shown this season is far different than the team that finished 4-13 for two straight seasons, and would line up perfectly with how Edelman played. New England will look to improve to 6-2 this week against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. More NFL: Patriots Must Learn From 2021 Example In AFC East Race vs. Bills
