"We'll get ready and get rolling."
Mike Vrabel’s arrival in New England has dramatically shaped the 2025 NFL regular season.
But now, with the playoffs beginning, the real season starts.
On Sunday, the Patriots host the Los Angeles Chargers in the AFC Wild Card Round at 8pm at Gillette Stadium. A night playoff game is something Patriots fans have not seen since, well, Vrabel came to town with his then-Tennessee Titans to defeat Tom Brady and the Patriots. That was then; this is now.
Vrabel's Patriots capped the regular season with a 38-10 win over the Dolphins, finishing 14-3 and securing the AFC’s second seed. The Patriots are favored by 3.5 points against the Chargers, and Vrabel said preparation for Sunday night has already started.
“We’ll get ready and get rolling and try to do what we do every week, which is prepare and figure out who we have available and what we feel like the keys are going to be, and try to practice and be ready to go,” Vrabel said postgame on Sunday about playing the Chargers. “That’s all we’ve done all year, and that’s all we’ll be able to do this week in the playoffs."
This time last year, the Patriots could not wait to wrap up the season. Finishing 4-13 and looking to rebuild immediately. Within a week of the last game of the regular season, Vrabel was hired by owner Robert Kraft after the firing of then-head coach Jerod Mayo after just one season.
Vrabel's turnaround of the culture in Foxborough has been an interesting watch.
He told reporters that the past four months don’t matter now with the postseason ahead. It's now a week-to-week season.
“It means we are the second seed, and we’re going to host the Chargers, and we start over,” Vrabel added. “The only wins that matter are going to be the ones that we can get moving forward.”
Vrabel remains no-nonsense ahead of Sunday night's Wild Card game. His mentality reflects on his team. An observation that even Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh said on Monday during his press conference, stating, “His teams play as he played,” Harbaugh said on Monday afternoon. “I do notice that. Tough, gritty, physical, smart, and fast. They kind of like to hit like he liked to hit. That’s what I’ve noticed.”
Sunday night's matchup is expected to be one of the standout ones of Wild Card Weekend.