No one is more excited about Mike Vrabel's return to New England than Dave Portnoy.
On Sunday's X show, the Barstool Sports founder and Patriots superfan celebrated Vrabel's hiring by highlighting AFC powerhouse teams like the Chiefs and Bills.
“Mikey Vrabel, Mikey Vrabel is coming home! Mikey Vrabel's homecoming begins now,” Portnoy said in the video. “We've been getting a little bit of testing. Hey NFL, hey Mahomes, hey Buffalo, hey everyone around the league, everyone who thinks things are going well, we're back!”
portnoy Added to follow-up message“Super Bowl #7 Loading!!!”
The Patriots announced Sunday that they have hired Vrabel as the 16th head coach in franchise history.
The 49-year-old former linebacker played with the team from 2001 to 2008 and won three Super Bowls.
Vrabel replaces fellow player-turned-coach Jerrod Mayo, who was fired last week after going 4-13 in his first season as head coach.
Mayo replaced legendary Patriots coach Bill Belichick in January 2024. The newly appointed UNC coach led the Patriots to six Super Bowl championships during his 24 seasons with the team.
Vrabel coached the Titans from 2018 to 2023 and most recently served as a consultant for the Browns before being fired last January.
Vrabel also spoke to the Bears and Jets about their head coaching vacancies before agreeing to terms with the Patriots. He spoke with The New Englander on Thursday.
The Patriots are scheduled to introduce Vrabel as their new head coach during a press conference on Monday.
There are five openings left in this recruiting cycle: the Bears, Jets, Raiders, Saints and Jaguars.
Chicago is reportedly interested in Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman, whose Fighting Irish will face Ohio State in the College Football Playoff national championship on January 20th. .
In other places, The Athletic reported On Sunday, it was announced that the Raiders have “zero interest” in Colorado Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders, despite previous talk linking the two.
Sanders' son, quarterback Shedur Sanders, is one of the top prospects in this year's class.
