The schedule release is done and dusted, offseason workouts are underway, and a much-speculated trade about a star wide receiver will not happen for two more weeks. Needless to say, we have reached a bit of a quieter time on the NFL calendar.
That said, there is still plenty to talk about. So, in order to clean out the notebook from the week that was, here is the latest edition of our Sunday Patriots Notes.
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Mike Vrabel’s consistency
Even though he had led his team to a Super Bowl in his first season and was named NFL Coach of the Year, Mike Vrabel has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons this offseason. The photos that were taken of him and NFL reporter Dianna Russini at an adults-only resort in Arizona earlier this year proved to be a distraction, to a point where Vrabel missed the third day of the draft to undergo counseling.
Through it all, there was speculation about his future with the club. Even though the league is not considering any discipline under its personal conduct policy, the matter impacting Vrabel’s job performance — i.e. him missing parts of the draft — looked like a potential breaking point.
However, inside the building nothing has changed. While Vrabel did address the team on the issue and appeared a bit all over the place in his immediate response, he has since settled back into his usual role.
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Safety Kevin Byard also said as much this week.
“I think he’s just very consistent with his coaching style,” Byard explained. “Even today, they’re doing some special teams, punt drills and he’s the loudest voice on the field. Just coaching the guys, making sure guys’ technique is good. But at the same time, still praising them when they do very well. It’s not like he’s just MF-ing guys or anything like that.
“And then obviously, as we get into our competition stuff at the end, pushing sleds, he’s out there front and center, yelling and things like that. So, no, he’s definitely the same guy that I recognized since Tennessee.”
Even players who, unlike Byard, did not previously work with Vrabel got what was promised to them.
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“I had a few other options, but ultimately I wanted to come here because Coach Vrabel,” said linebacker K.J. Britt, who arrived from the Dolphins in free agency. “Played this game, knows the ins and outs of this game. There’s a lot of stuff that y’all don’t know, that we know, that goes on behind closed doors. Once you got somebody who you could relate with, who’s been through this, that’s what you want to be around.”
Byard, meanwhile, previously worked with Vrabel in Tennessee. After joining the Patriots back in March, the first-team All-Pro continues to see a coach who has an ability to rally players behind him and have them buy into his message.
Off-field scandals and speculation be damned.
“Especially when you’re a young player in this league and you come into this organization, a guy like Mike Vrabel who’s played in this league for a long time, has success, Pro Bowls, All-Pros, won Super Bowls. So, when a guy like that gets in front of the room he commands the room, he commands attention,” Byard said.
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“He’s coaching his technique or telling your effort and finish, or all the things he talks about. It’s very easy to buy in because he’s done it at a high level. I think for any of us players, you want to be coached by somebody that’s going to connect with you as well on a personal level. Because I think that’s what coaching is about; when you are trying to connect with people on that personal level, people want to know that you actually care about them, you want to get to know them. … I think it makes it very easy for you to want to be able to play for a guy like that, and I think that’s one thing that Mike does well.”
No player on the Patriots’ defensive roster played more snaps in 2025 than Craig Woodson, a remarkable achievement for any rookie, let alone one selected on Day 3 of the draft. However, the fourth-round pick never looked back after becoming a defensive cornerstone during his first training camp.
Now off to his sophomore campaign, Woodson is bound to keep building his role — something new arrival Mike Brown is already seeing.
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“He doesn’t carry himself like he was a rookie last year,” Brown said about his fellow safety. “He’s very mature, goes about his business. I can tell he knows what he’s doing. He cares about what he’s doing as well. Good impression of him so far. Great player.”
Scouting Caleb Lomu
The Patriots released a new episode of their Forged in Foxborough series this week, and it features a segment about area scout Landon Simpson describing first-round draft pick Caleb Lomu.
“First off, I thought he had a great interview,” Simpson said in the brief clip filmed at the Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. “Came in with the right energy. Made of the right stuff. Certainly got the wiring to be a pro at this level.
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“Biggest thing about him is he’s a real big guy. Got massive hands, heavy hands, but he moves well; he’s nimble on his feet, has some quickness working side to side. Like his ability in pass pro to anchor. He’s able to drop his weight and hold firm. In the run game, he needs to be a little bit of a mauler, but I think he plays with some instincts and awareness for everything around him. He’ll put his hands on people and he’s not afraid to finish. And I think he’s a smart dude.”
The Patriots traded up from the 31st to the 28th position in this year’s draft to select Lomu. He projects as a third offensive tackle his rookie season and potential candidate to eventually replace veteran Morgan Moses in the starting lineup.
In an effort to rebuild their tight end group behind team captain Hunter Henry, the Patriots signed free agent Julian Hill to a three-year, $7.5 million deal. Outside of his potential as a blocker, it is clear to see why the team was drawn to him: he describes himself as a “put down your head and work” type of player.
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“People talk about culture guys,” he explained this week. “I’m a guy, when you tell me to do something, that’s my focus and I’m going to do it. So, if they say, ‘We need you to catch five more passes this year, block this guy‘ — whatever it is, I’m going to do it …
“At the end of the day, whatever they need from me, I’m going to do it. I’m going work hard to do it. Win, succeed, fail, lose, whatever it is, that’s my focus.”
The Patriots’ 2024 season under one-and-done head coach Jerod Mayo would largely have been a forgettable affair if not for the fact that it was Drake Maye’s rookie campaign. And despite his and his team’s struggles en route to a 4-13 record, the young quarterback produced some memorable moments.
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One of those came in an eventual overtime loss to the Titans — a play that haunted Tennessee’s defense new Patriots safety Mike Brown revealed.
“My teammates in Tennessee, we talked about that play all the time, how long we ran around,” Brown explained. “And I ended up just blitzing out of the deep half because my guy got pushed out of bounds, and the guy caught it too. That was a crazy play.”
“Great player,” Brown added when talking about Maye. “It was tough scouting against him as well. But just seeing him — I’m not around him as much because we always split offense and defense — but the type of leader he is, and he just puts his head down andI work. I speak to him around the building, but just like the way he works. That’s all I can see right now.”
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Nancy Meier riding into the sunset
Nancy Meier’s 52-year run with the Patriots found its end this week. The team officially celebrated her contributions on Monday.
“It’s been amazing,” Meier told WBZ-TV. “I say it’s what other people call NFL dreams. But I fulfilled what everyone else wants to do. Because of players, and because of coaches, and because of owners, and because of all these people around me, I have this, I have jewelry, and I’ve been to parties, I’ve been to the White House. I’ve done everything, and in a very normal way, because we’ve done it more than once.”
While her title of director of scouting administration remains open for the time being, the Patriots did hire Courtney Weiner as scouting administration coordinator. Weiner started this week.
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New longest-tenured employee
With Nancy Meier no longer part of the team, the title of longest-tenured Patriots employee now belongs to vice president of communications Stacey James.
James originally joined the club back in June 1993 under owner James Busch Orthwein. Originally serving as assistant director of public relations, James stayed on after Robert Kraft purchased the franchise the following offseason. He was promoted to director of media relations in 1995 and has held his current title since 2021.
Last Super Bowl rematch
The NFL’s schedule makers have decided that the Patriots and Seahawks will open the 2026 regular season. It will be the first time in a decade that the previous year’s Super Bowl contenders will go against one another in Week 1.
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New England will hope for a different outcome this time around. The 2016 season was opened by the then-champion Broncos against the Panthers, and Denver ended up winning that matchup as well: after a 24-10 win in Super Bowl 50 — which coincidentally also took place in Santa Clara’s Levi’s Stadium, just like Patriots vs. Seahawks back in February — they also won the season opener 21-20.
Another Week 1 candidate
As noted above, the NFL’s 2026 season will kick off with the Patriots visiting Seattle. However, the league seriously considered the New York Giants as a candidate as well.
Ultimately, the Super Bowl rematch was favored for multiple reasons, including the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks (according to Bill Zimmerman of Windy City Gridiron):
In the end, the NFL decided to have the Patriots be the choice and have the Giants open at home on Sunday Night Football. That Sunday is September 13th, just two days after the 25th anniversary of the tragic events of 9/11, and the NFL felt it was best to have the Giants play at home to open the season to honor that anniversary. For those old enough to remember, the Giants team was very involved in honoring firefighters, working with the community, and helping heal New York City after the terrorist attacks.
The Patriots will play their first game of the season on Sept. 9 at 8:20 p.m. ET.
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Week ahead
With the schedule release in the rear-view mirror, the Patriots will continue their usual offseason preparation. That will include some players being made available following Tuesday’ workout at Gillette Stadium.
On Wednesday, the Patriots will hold their Community Day and host students from Young Woods Elementary School in Providence. The students will participate in football drills led by players and additionally get a look behind the scenes from members of the team’s football staff.
Outside of New England, the NFL will hold its revived accelerator program; Patriots assistant head coach Terrell Williams will be in attendance. The league’s spring meeting is furthermore taking place in Orlando on Tuesday and Wednesday.
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