Belichick on Vrabel: 'Great instincts and intuition'

Patriots coach says Titans coach has what it takes to give his players a quality football education

Bill Belichick believes that every day is a master class for the Tennessee Titans under coach Mike Vrabel.

“I’m sure he’s teaching these guys a lot of football,” Belichick said Wednesday morning prior to the first of two days of joint workouts between the Titans and Patriots at Tennessee’s training facility. “He was a very smart player, a very good fundamental player.

“… Mike’s always had great instincts and intuition for the game.”

Vrabel played 14 seasons in the NFL, eight of them for New England with Belichick (2001-08). He made his only Pro Bowl and earned his only All-Pro honor in 2007 as a member of the Patriots and played in four Super Bowls (three wins) with them.

Tennessee and New England are scheduled to practice Wednesday and Thursday in advance of their preseason game Saturday at Nissan Stadium (6 p.m., CDT).

The teams met during the regular season in 2018, Vrabel’s first as a head coach, and the Titans schooled the Patriots 34-10 that day. New England won seven of nine after that and then added three playoff victories to claim its sixth Super Bowl victory.

“We’re not going to game plan for them, but we’re going to be able to see different looks and how we adjust to those different coverages,” Vrabel said this week. “…I think that will be important for us to get that kind work in. … (Belichick) and I probably have scripted less or designed to have things scripted less so that guys are ready to play the game.”

Belichick said he was eager for his team to work against the Titans’ athletic quarterbacks with their potential to contribute in the run game. He also noted there are differences in Tennessee’s coverage schemes and special teams schemes as compared to anything the Patriots have faced thus far in the training camp and preseason.

“I have a ton of respect for Mike as a person, as a coach,” Belichick said. “I’ve known Mike for a long time. Obviously, he did a great job last year in the game we played them. We really got handled down here. He’s got an excellent staff.”