FOXBOROUGH – Admittedly, not being in Buffalo to cover the game on Sunday, the fan in me came out again.
Sitting on my couch while also trying to write for the site, the yell that must have echoed through the parking lot with my apartment windows open must have been ridiculously loud on the Efton Chism III game-winner from Drake Maye. It was like I was watching with a group of buddies hammered crushing wings again.
I hadn’t been that nervous for an ending in a long time, including Denver last season.
But, what made the entire day that much better for fans around New England, was Mike Vrabel’s postgame speech in the locker room, seen hundreds of thousands of times now on social media.
Probably like, 15 just from me.
The game balls he hands out to Chism III, Craig Woodson and Romeo Doubs are all awesome, but the look Vrabel gives Maye before saying ‘hey, we ain’t (expletive) taking no more (expletive),” answered any questions that were starting to arise about a ‘rift’ or lack of trust between the coach and QB.
It’s also a clear sign that Vrabel knows the two are always tied together as long as they’re both here.
On Monday morning, I asked Vrabel how important it was for both him and Maye to know that during the week leading up to the game, the head coach and the locker room still had the QB’s back.
“I mean, I think that that all goes without saying. We spend a lot of time together. Everybody understands how the quarterback has to perform in this league for teams to have success. And everybody does have his back, starting with me and everybody all the way down,” he said.
Vrabel is still going to coach Maye hard, just as Bill Belichick coached Tom Brady hard. Will there be, or has there already been some disagreements or tough conversations between them in the first two years of this pairing? Probably. But it’s necessary and clearly, Maye was able to respond as the noise got the loudest.
In the same answer, Vrabel pointed to some things that still need to be fixed.
“Again, Drake wants to be as perfect as possible. We know that that’s not possible,” he added. “We have to be precise, and we have to lead the offense, be able to distribute the football and not just focusing on one single receiver, being able to spread the football around. If it’s not there and he doesn’t feel like it’s there down the field or whatever it may be, then finding the check down. Again, a lot of positive things. We’ve still got to take care of the football, got to do a better job with the pocket. There were some good pockets.
“Every week is going to be a good front, that’s what happens in the National Football League.”
The one week of rift talk is quickly in the past, but now, Vrabel will be stepping on the gas when it comes to making sure Maye continues ascending.
