The last two years have been abysmal for the Patriots to the point where Robert Kraft has anointed his team's aggregate 8-26 record over that span as the worst of his three-decade ownership. Things had to change, and the 2024 season was barely over when Kraft decided to hire three-time Super Bowl champ Mike Vrabel as the team's head coach.
The coaching staff was the first thing that needed to be changed, and the combination of Vrabel and Josh McDaniels is the right duo to ensure Drake Maye's development as a franchise quarterback continues to trend in a positive direction.
Bringing in Vrabel was one of the high points of an eventual offseason across the league, as CBS Sports' Tyler Sullivan had the Patriots' new coach as seventh among the Top 10 offseason moves made in the NFL.
Impacts of Mike Vrabel's hiring will not just be felt in New England
Vrabel's tenure was barely a couple of months old when Eliot Wolf and Kraft got to work reshaping the roster through free agency and the draft. Sullivan noted the combination of Vrabel's experience and ability to make in-game adjustments - two traits that Jerod Mayo sorely lacked - will be a key difference for the Patriots in 2025.
You can bring in all the talented players you want to reshape your roster, but ultimately, the culture has to be there, and that starts with the head coach. The Patriots are one of seven teams that brought in new head coaches this offseason, and it's not impossible to believe that what they accomplish under Vrabel's watch could have a ripple effect across the league.
Assuming Vrabel can restore the Patriots to contenders and provide them with some stability along the sidelines, that could very well send a message to other owners and general managers that stability is a vital trait. In the 31 years Kraft has owned the team, Vrabel is only the fifth head coach to grace the sidelines in New England. That demonstrates the stability the organization has maintained, except for Mayo's one-and-done 2024 season.
Vrabel's presence should help the Patriots at least double their win total from 2024, and perhaps even double the combined win total of the last two seasons. That will send a message that the organization is on its way back.