Vrabel uses car analogy to outline Pats' ‘aggressive' free agency plan originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Mike Vrabel has left little doubt that he’s driving the bus for the New England Patriots this offseason.
Vrabel spoke with reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday in his first press conference since he was introduced as Patriots head coach in January and outlined a clear vision for how his team plans to attack free agency in mid-March.
“Hopefully aggressive. We want to be aggressive,” Vrabel told reporters in Indianapolis. “We want to target players that we feel like are gonna help us, that are gonna be outstanding players, that are gonna be outstanding additions to the locker room and the community. And if that all fits and the compensation fits, I’m confident that we’ll be aggressive.”
The Patriots have the most cap space in the NFL by a wide margin ($128 million, per OverTheCap) and a host of needs to address in free agency, most notably at offensive line, wide receiver and edge rusher. Vrabel noted that he and the front office — led by executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf and VP of player personnel Ryan Cowden — have already begun discussions about talent acquisition that include contingency plans if they miss out on their top targets.
“I think having an Option A and an Option B — I mean, things are going to change,” Vrabel said. “Everybody is looking at the same players, so we have to be able to pivot and adjust and have a vision for each player I would say at each level.
“There’s gonna be this high level that things will get done very quickly. That’ll transition then to maybe just some mid-range dollars, and then obviously you look at opportunities.
“Free agency gets broken down into the compensation and then it gets broken down into opportunity, and I think we’re in a good position to offer both in terms of compensation and opportunity for some of these players.”
New England isn’t exactly an attractive destination for marquee free agents, in part due the team’s 8-23 record over the last two seasons, the high tax rate in Massachusetts and the cold weather in the region. So, the best way for Vrabel and Co. to land top talent might be to simply offer them the most money.
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Vrabel — who will be the Patriots’ “final decision-maker” when it comes to personnel, per our Patriots Insider Tom E. Curran — seems willing to do just that.
“I like to shop like everybody else,” Vrabel said. “So, when you go and there’s only one of a certain car, maybe you have to pay a little bit more for that one car because there’s only one of them.
“When you start to get into a range where you feel like there’s an area where players are comparable and you like three or four players in a certain area for a certain role, you may not have to overspend.
“But it’s free agency; I think everybody overspends sometimes in free agency.”
Vrabel’s comments stand in contrast to those of his predecessor, Jerod Mayo, who promised the Patriots would “burn some cash” last winter only to watch Wolf and the front office make minimal additions in free agency.
That disconnect between head coach and front office shouldn’t exist with Vrabel, who made clear Tuesday in Indy that he has a plan for free agency — and intends to act on it.
