Vrabel is perfect fit in Belichick's scheme
By Lori Shontz
Of the Post-Dispatch
11/05/2004
The vocal linebacker is an unselfish leader for the New England Patriots. New England linebacker Mike Vrabel doesn't live on his laurels. For instance, he still isn't comfortable taking credit for his play in Super Bowl XXXVI, when he pressured Rams quarterback Kurt Warner into throwing an interception that Ty Law returned for a touchdown.
"I mean, they let me go," he said. "I think they screwed up the protection, and when they do that, when you don't get blocked, it's either a screen or they let you go. I kind of paused for a second to make sure it wasn't a screen and then kept going. When they let you go, you're supposed to be pressuring the quarterback."
What about his more recent performance in Super Bowl XXXVIII against the Carolina Panthers, when he became the first defensive player to score a Super Bowl touchdown on offense since William "The Refrigerator" Perry?
"It was cool," Vrabel said. "It was exciting to finally be able to do that on that kind of stage. I haven't had that much luck down there this season, so we'll see."
While he hasn't scored any touchdowns this season, Vrabel has continued to be one of the defensive leaders for the Patriots, with 35 tackles, 3.0 sacks and a vocal, team-first attitude that jibes perfectly with coach Bill Belichick's philosophies.
"Mike's smart," Belichick said. "He works hard. He's a player who has versatility, can do different things for us, both for his athletic skills and the mental side of it. He understands different responsibilities and has different roles in the defense. I mean, all those qualities are good qualities to have in a player and a defensive player."
Plus, Belichick added, Vrabel is "tough."
Vrabel, who played on the defensive line at Ohio State, entered the NFL with Pittsburgh and spent four seasons with the Steelers. At 6 feet 4 inches and 261 pounds, he made the transition to linebacker, but as he learned the new position he got buried on the Steelers' depth chart.
Vrabel has said that he considered giving up professional football at that point. But the Patriots were interested in signing him as a free agent, and Vrabel found a home in the scheme that Belichick designed.
"Mike's a football player," Scott Pioli, Patriots vice president of player personnel, told the Boston Globe. "I don't know any other way to describe him. I mean, Bill and I aren't great numbers guys. We don't get hung up on height-weight-speed. We want football players because come Sunday at 1 o'clock, football players play football. What they did in the 40-yard dash one day in shorts, or in the vertical jump, is not what the fans pay to see and not what we're asking them to do."
With that kind of attitude and work ethic, it's no wonder that Vrabel wasn't exactly reveling in the Patriots' 21-game winning streak, an NFL record that was snapped by Pittsburgh a week ago. Even the loss couldn't prompt him to reflect on the Patriots' accomplishment, which is impressive even considering the league's parity.
He's focused on the future: Striving for another Super Bowl championship to go with the two he has already been a part of.
"We've always said you're defined in this league by championships, and not how many regular season games you can win a row," Vrabel said. "People always remember the champion, and that's our goal."
Every year.
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