When Mike Vrabel was named the 16th head coach of the New England Patriots back in January, fans hoped to get the full package — starting with a team that’s tough, disciplined, and hard for opponents to play against.
It’s only week 10 of Vrabel's debut season, and the Patriots are already getting much more than they bargained for from their new regime.
Vrabel changed the culture in Foxboro almost immediately, but the locker room vibes seem to hit new levels with each passing week. Take Week 10, for example. The NFL’s trade deadline expired on Tuesday evening, and the Patriots received some criticism both locally and nationally for standing pat with their current group.
Trade deadline day can be an awkward one around NFL facilities, especially for veteran players whose names have been thrown around in rumors. Thankfully, it falls on the players’ off day, so they have the luxury of tuning out the noise at home, if they so choose.
According to Vrabel, his Patriots took an awesomely opposite approach on Tuesday, and it was completely unprompted.
The New England Patriots’ off-day attendance says everything about the team’s thriving culture under Mike Vrabel
At this point, Patriots fans are sick and tired of hearing about their team’s easy schedule to start the season. It’s about to get a lot harder in Week 10.
New England will put its six-game winning streak on the line against MVP candidate Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It’s one of the toughest spots of the season for the Patriots, on the road against a Bucs team coming off a bye week, with a Thursday Night Football game back home against the rival New York Jets on deck.
The Patriots will need their best performance of the season to knock off the Bucs at Raymond James Stadium. The good news? Their internal buy-in is at full throttle right now.
Vrabel revealed during his Wednesday morning presser that 41 players were at the facility lifting weights during their day off on Tuesday.
The Patriots had 41 players come in on their off day to lift this week. Mike Vrabel was impressed.
— Mark Daniels (@ByMarkDaniels) November 5, 2025
I talked to several players about why they opted to workout yesterday. Here's what they said: https://t.co/Q7JYUV6Hfc
It’s clear that something special is brewing in Foxboro right now. It’s easy from the outside to rip Vrabel for failing to add depth at the trade deadline for his 7-2 team; meanwhile, he’s got a small army of players basically living at the facility with a synced focus on the next game.
Fans probably didn't need another reason to love this year's team, but this story should add another layer. The Patriots are a team moving in one direction, and that makes them a scary proposition for opponents over the second half of 2025.