Did Mike Vrabel's Patriots Hall of Fame induction pave the way for his firing in Tennessee?
BOSTON -- Some new details have emerged about Mike Vrabel's firing by the Titans, and according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Tennessee owner Amy Adams Strunk began to question his commitment to the team after an October trip to New England.
It was a pretty big trip for Vrabel, who spent the Titans' bye week in Foxboro grabbing a red jacket and taking his place in the Patriots Hall of Fame. He sat with Robert Kraft that Sunday when the Patriots beat the Bills at Gillette Stadium, and addressed the crowd at halftime.
While his time as a player in New England ended with a trade to the Kansas City Chiefs, which didn't sit well with Vrabel at the time, he made it clear that weekend that his love for the Patriots never waivered.
"I don't want you to take this organization for granted," Vrabel told New England fans. "I've been a lot of places, this is a special place with great leadership, great fans, great direction, and great coaching. Enjoy it, it's not like this everywhere."
Vrabel led the Titans to a disappointing 6-11 record this season. It was the team's second straight sub-.500 season with Vrabel at the helm, after he led Tennessee to the playoffs the three previous years. There were reports that he wasn't seeing eye-to-eye with general manager Ran Carthon, but on Wednesday, Rapoport said their relationship was fine and not what led to Vrabel's dismissal.
That was all Adams Strunk, whom Rapoport said was thinking about moving on from Vrabel since his Hall of Fame induction in New England.
"This was a decision made by Amy Adams Strunk, one that she has been mulling for the last several weeks. I would say maybe the last several months ever since Mike Vrabel went to New England, took part in the Hall of Fame day and all of the rumors started floating about whether or not Mike Vrabel would be the Patriots' coach next year, whether he'd be the Titans' coach," Rapoport said on Wednesday morning's Good Morning Football. "He never really addressed that internally. I know that didn't sit great with the people there."
Vrabel and Adams Strunk met on Tuesday, which Rapoport said was not a long meeting, and the head coach was let go a few hours later. Adams Strunk said after the firing that they didn't want to seek a trade for Vrabel because the complicated process would have taken too long.
Vrabel reportedly wanted to stick around with the Titans, but it doesn't sound like he put up much of a fight to do so. And now that he's available for any team in need of a head coach, those comments about New England are being viewed in a new light.
Bill Belichick remains the head coach of the Patriots. There's a chance that he could be back for a 25th season in New England, but Robert and Jonathan Kraft could also decide it's time to move on after going without a playoff win since 2019.
If the Patriots do end up needing a new head coach, Vrabel is reportedly interested, and the Krafts are expected to be interested in him too. If Vrabel ends up in New England, it sounds like his comments during his Patriots Hall of Fame induction may have paved the road for it to happen.
