Because they were given the superstar treatment this week in their matchup against the Bucs, the New England Patriots had a lot of eyes watching their game in Tampa, wanting to see if the current leaders in the AFC East are the real deal or are a product of their easy strength of schedule.
It was a lot for the Patriots to live up to, as they hoped to continue their six-game win streak and prove they are a legitimate threat in the NFL by beating an excellent Bucs team on the road. They accomplished that on Sunday afternoon, in a hard-fought battle that could have very easily resulted in a loss. But instead, they are leaving Tampa with their seventh straight win.
Considering QB Baker Mayfield is an MVP frontrunner alongside Drake Maye, on top of the Bucs having one of the best defensive fronts in the league, yet their QB was only sacked one time for a loss of one yard compared to the past two weeks, which saw him sacked 12 times for a loss of 75 yards.
That has now made the Patriots the first team to sweep the NFC South this season, and Mike Vrabel had a hilarious way to make it even more frustrating for the Bucs.
Mike Vrabel has the perfect reaction to the Patriots finishing off the NFC South with another win
While the Patriots headed to the locker room, Vrabel was doing his usual post-game activity of high-fiving every player as they made their way through the stadium.
But reporters caught him chanting, "NFC South champs! NFC South champs!" as the players filed in, claiming the title for the Patriots since they beat the entire division this year.
As Mike Vrabel greeted each player on their way back to the locker room, he kept saying, “NFC South champs! NFC South champs!” — a reference to the quality of opponent the Patriots beat. pic.twitter.com/COitn2HvVr
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) November 9, 2025
If that isn't indicative to what the Patriots are in 2025, it's hard to say what is.
They enter a short week with a Thursday Night Football game against the Jets scheduled for Week 11, with an 8-2 record. They are currently tied with the Broncos and the Colts for the best record in the NFL, a feat no one could have predicted during the offseason.
On top of that, they have now won as many games this season as they had over the last two years combined, as 2023 and 2024 both ended with four wins and 13 losses.
It's just the latest sign of how good it was for Robert Kraft to hire Mike Vrabel, for Josh McDaniels to make his third trip back to Foxboro, and Eliot Wolf to pick Drake Maye in last year's draft.