Many signs appear to be pointing towards the Patriots righting their ship in 2025 under Mike Vrabel. The team had an intense training camp, and a lot of New England's young players showed flashes of brilliance during the preseason games.
Enter Tony Romo as the latest believer in Vrabel and the Patriots.
Romo, who serves as CBS's lead analyst, spoke to the Boston Globe's Ben Volin recently and said that the Patriots are emerging as one of the league's sleepers, especially with Vrabel at the helm.
"Don't be surprised if they have a really good season this year," Romo said. "I'm excited to see how this develops, because Vrabel is a really good football coach."
The reunion with Josh McDaniels is also an X-factor and will prove to be a key asset to the success of second-year quarterback Drake Maye.
"You put Vrabel and Josh McDaniels together, you get a young quarterback [Drake Maye], and you got some juice," Romo said.
Mike Vrabel's coaching will give the Patriots some much-needed juice
While the regular season has yet to commence, Vrabel's marks on the Patriots were crystal clear during training camp. There was no messing around; players were locked in, and a refreshing feeling of discipline and a new attitude prevailed.
Romo noted that the Patriots are one of his teams that may shock the league this season, and he may not be wrong. New England's schedule is very forgiving, and Eliot Wolf did an outstanding job of identifying the team's needs via the draft and free agency. Rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson is already emerging as one of the biggest steals of the draft. Maye finally has help along the offensive line and at wide receiver, and the Patriots' defense is built to be one of the league's best.
All that boils down to coaching, and after the 2024 disaster under Jerod Mayo, the Patriots have a proven winner in Vrabel leading the charge. This is the same coach who took a journeyman quarterback, Ryan Tannehill, to an AFC Championship game and won Coach of the Year in 2021.
The Patriots are listed as the betting favorite in 11 of their 17 games, according to DraftKings. Under Vrabel, getting to 11 wins and making the playoffs isn't impossible to believe.