For decades, Bill Belichick ran the New England Patriots with military-like discipline. He might not be in the building anymore, but head coach Mike Vrabel is making sure to keep the Patriots' Way alive and well in Foxborough.
While Vrabel isn't as cold as his legendary head coach, he can also be pretty harsh when the situation calls for it. Notably, rookie pass rusher Gabe Jacas has learned that the hard way, but he's not complaining.
When asked about his relationship with his head coach, the rookie out of Illinois acknowledged that Vrabel's tough love has helped him stay on his toes. It might not work for everyone, but it's definitely the right approach to help him.
Mike Vrabel wants to get Gabe Jacas up to speed well ahead of the Patriots' season opener
"Oh ya I love that. That kind of coaching you don't get anywhere else. So the fact that he's hard on me, getting the best out of me," Jacas said (h/t Sophie Weller).
This was evident in the preseason opener. Vrabel gave Jacas an earful on the sidelines after he didn't give it his all on a special teams play, but instead of shying away from the challenge, that may have been the spark the rookie needed to show his best form.
Of course, he's still taking baby steps, but the early returns are encouraging. Through two preseason games, the rookie pass rusher has logged nine combined tackles (four solo). He has yet to record a sack, though he had one negated by a roughing the passer penalty.
The Patriots also have him on the punt coverage unit, something he had never done before, so it's still a bit of a work in progress.
But regardless of the execution, Coach Vrabel wants to see top-notch effort from his second-round pick.
Jacas missed crucial classroom time and practice reps because of a contract dispute. It got so bad that some questioned whether he could contribute at all as a rookie, since he had plenty of catching up to do.
That's why his head coach is making sure to give him as much one-on-one time as possible, push his buttons, and see how much he actually wants it. So far, so good, and one can only wonder how good he can be once the game slows down for him and he gets a hold of the playbook.
It takes a special coach to know how and when to put pressure on a player. Being a leader is about much more than the Xs and Os and clock management, and Vrabel, as a former player himself, seems to be great at that.
As for Jacas, he knows he won't take the field often unless he stays on his Ps and Qs.
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