SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Patriots offensive line coach Doug Marrone, at 61, has experienced more football and more teams than most.
He played at Syracuse, and then in the NFL. He's been an NFL head coach twice, and a college head coach. This is his 18th NFL season. He's seen it all, from every angle, for a long time. So when he is asked and talks about the impact Mike Vrabel has had on this Patriots team in just one season, and Marrone starts to tear up, you take note. Actually, a lot more than that. It sort of stops you in your tracks.
"I get tears in my eyes thinking about it," Marrone said. "Yeah, I really do. It's amazing, because it's so amazing. I've been in this business a long time. It's been ... it's unbelievable. It really is unbelievable.
"I had started to lose a little bit of faith in that team aspect of sports. And I think because, whatever the reasons, we can say, you know, where people brand themselves or financially, it's at a large scale. But I think the thing that I keep with me, what this season has proved to me, is that you can do it the right way. When I think of a team, I think of the first team I was ever on was, it was as an 8-year-old in a Little League and how much joy, and how much fun it was. Once you got to college, it became like a job. College now is definitely a job. It's such a great feeling to be part of a team, a true team. I don't remember that in like forever. It was something that I thought maybe couldn't be done anymore, with the personalities and everything that's in here, and this is probably the closest team that I've ever been a part of. I would say that's Coach Vrabel. And as soon as I said that, his first answer will be, 'It's the players and coaches.' It does come across as genuine.
"Everybody says the same thing. Yeah, everybody wants this. Everybody wants it. But I don't think everyone can cultivate, and I don't think anyone's done a better job of cultivating it than him. I don't care if he gets mad at me for saying that or not. It's the truth."
As many of you know, I'm a natural-born cynic, and probably became more of one during a 25-year career. I've been around all kinds of teams. If the team is winning, it's pretty easy for everyone to get along, for people to say how great the bond of the team is. Heard a lot of that being around the Seahawks this week as well. Winning breeds happiness. When you're the Patriots, and you've lost one game since September, the vibes are off the charts.
That's what I thought for much of this season.
And I was wrong.
Being around the Patriots this week in a more relaxed atmosphere, where you can actually have conversations with players, coaches and executives, I came to realize that the Mike Vrabel Effect on this team is very real. It's not just some Super Bowl storyline. Vrabel's done the impossible: he's made a professional football organization — not just a team — a true family in a matter of months, and it could very well be the reason why the Patriots win their seventh Lombardi Trophy today.
"You do that through connectivity. Like, that's, that's the essence of it all," said special teams coorinator Jeremy Springer, who has spent the last four seasons serving under Sean McVay, Jerod Mayo and Vrabel. "You feel connected with the people you love because you love them. And I think this team developed that. It didn't start off that way, but our head coach, Mike Vrabel, since he's been here, has truly, truly been about building a connection amongst the team through the Four H's, right? It's how our team functions, our rookies decorating our offices throughout the holidays. It's just been little things like that that have really brought us together, and even whenever shit has been bad for us, like losing to Pittsburgh or having multiple turnovers or having a bad plan on special teams, the way he conducts the team meeting after that and says, 'All right, it's not just Rhamondre. It's not just Marcus Jones, like it's all of us in this room that make this thing happen. I think guys have seen that consistently, and it's helped us win football games because of it, and it's just gradually made us closer.
"I also think bringing the right guys in here has made a tremendous difference. I've never been around better teammates than Stefan Diggs and Mack Hollins, I just haven't, in my 15 years. Those guys are the glue ... Morgan Moses, our quarterback just being so unselfish, and those top guys being so unselfish have allowed the other guys to elevate their game and also try to emulate how they act, which has made us even closer because of it.
"All those things right there, just consistently. And then we won games. And winning football games, however you want to look at it, brings you closer. Because we're winning football games, you're starting to work well together, and that makes you more connected. And I just think all that combines over a long-lasting season, and to this point now, we're like, 'Hey, we've shared a lot of success. We've shared some down times, and we all bought into what Coach Vrabel is preaching, and it's made a closer because of it."
The four H's, which Vrabel borrowed from his time in Cleveland with Kevin Stefanski, involved players and coaches standing in front of each other and revealing their history, hero, heartbreak, and hope. Vrabel started it off, and was extremely vulnerable. That set the stage for the team to take down a lot of walls, and build them back up through the strength of shared experiences, good and bad.
"I don't know how new school it is," Vrabel said last month when asked about his personal coaching style. "When I was at Ohio State, I tried to have a great relationship with the defensive linemen that I coached. When I went to Houston, I tried to have a great relationship with Whitney Mercilus, Max Bullough, Brian Cushing and everybody that we coached down there. Then each step along the way, you become a head coach, and again, those relationships probably aren't the same.
"What I try to be is honest with them, be transparent, be authentic. I think that's the biggest thing, is just be authentic and don't try to be fake. But we see each other every day. I hope we have some level of care for what they do as people and as players."
The players certainly appreciate it, even well-traveled veterans.
"He has that perfect dynamic or that balance between coach and used-to-be player, friend mindset or father mindset, because he meets you where you're at the same way I like to approach things," Stefon Diggs said. "He has little jokes. Calls people “little buddy.” He walks around, we all got handshakes. That's when I say he's like one of – like part of the team. He's the coach, but still has that player in him too as well. So, I think it makes for a great relationship."
There's also a ton of examples of other things that Vrabel has instituted, whether that be players needing to know the names of employees that help them every day, Will Campbell doing an SNL Weekend Update skit every Friday, putting an emphasis on the mantra that "We Treat You The Way You Treat The Team!” There are just tons of that stuff from this team this season. The result has been an impossibly close professional team that has done just about the impossible this season to this point, with one more feat to accomplish.
"They need to know that you love them, you know, and you care about them, and then they'll do the right things," Josh McDaniels said. "And this locker room has been uniquely bonded, I think, for a long, long time now, since the summer. And that's why you see us kind of play the way we do. We have a lot of joy in the building. We have a lot of joy day to day, and hopefully we have one more Sunday with a bunch of joy."
After this week, I really do think what Vrabel has created with these Patriots will be a factor in the Super Bowl. This cynic has been won over, and the Patriots might be World Champions again because of it. The only bad part? This team only has a few days left together. But the impact will resonate well beyond Super Bowl Sunday.
"I think once I sit back and reflect on it, it's really gonna hit me how close this team was and how much I loved it, and being around these guys, and it's the last time this team will be together on Sunday," Springer said. "However you look at it's the way the NFL works, and I'm just grateful to be around it, and I'm gonna really soak in the next four or five days and finish the right way."
What worries me about the Seahawks
Mike Macdonald is good, and had extra time: As a defensive gameplanner and playcaller, the Seahawks' head coach is one of the best in the league. His secondary is going to disguise their looks about 90 percent of the time, which means Drake Maye will have his toughest mental test of the season in the final game. The Chargers and Jesse Minter were the closest challenge, while Houston had the better talent. This is going to be very tough sledding for Maye, and he's going to need to strike a perfect balance between being aggressive and throwing into very tight windows, and limiting the turnovers. It's a tough chore.
WR Jaxson Smith-Njigba and RB Kenneth Walker: They are the two best weapons in this game, and capable of a big play at any moment. They are a big reason, along with the Seattle defense and special teams, why Sam Darnold doesn't have to be great for the Seahawks to win. That's not true for Maye, unless Darnold turns the ball over. Limit JSN and Walker, and the Patriots likely win this game.
The stunts and games from the Seahawks: We went over that already. They have five players with at least 40 pressures this season, and the Seahawks are one of the lowest blitz rate teams in the league. These guys work well together, and they pressure the quarterback consistently.
Seattle puts the special in special teams: Rasheed Shaheed is one of the league's most dangerous punt and kick returners, while the Patriots are 23rd in EPA per kickoff and 30th in EPA per punt this season. Seahawks punter Michael Dickson and kicker Jason Meyers both have the edge over Bryce Baringer and Andy Borregales. In a game expected to be tight, special teams could swing it with a big play.
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Where the Patriots can take advantage
Simply heating up Sam Darnold could win this game: Something else we've been over this week. Darnold may have been mistake-free in his two playoff games, he didn't face the Patriots' defense. Darnold has put the ball in harm's way 25 times this season, and the Patriots do everything that gives him trouble and makes Darnold start turning the ball over. Darnold is still one of the worst pressure QBs in the league. And the Patriots have been generating a ton of pressure. Pick-six anyone?
Seahawks' offensive line is ordinary, and weak in the middle: Expect the Patriots to attack the protections of the Seahawks repeatedly, starting with RG Anthony Bradford, C Jalen Sundell and LG Grey Zabel, who hasn't been the same since his late-season injury. RBs Kenneth Walker and George Holani are also weak in pass protection. And the tackles can be had as well. Patriots are going to bring the heat, and try to get Milton Williams and Christian Barmore going. Williams had a monster Super Bowl for the Eagles last year, and I'd be betting on a repeat and possible Super Bowl MVP award.
Drake Maye's legs and draws: The Seahawks normally don't spy the QB, and they are among the league leaders in scrambles allowed (although they don't go for much because of the team speed). Seattle's games lead the susceptible to scrambles and quick-hitting draws, which the Rams got them on a few times. Don't be surprised — and don't throw your remote — if McDaniels calls some draws in second-and-longs, trying to time it with a stunt.
Top matchups
CB Christian Gonzalez vs. WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba: The heavyweight fight we all want. Gonzalez is at his best in man and a top matchup.
CB Carlton Davis vs. WR Rasheed Shaheed: Both teams will be hunting big plays against the No. 2 corners.
CB Marcus Jones vs. WR Cooper Kupp: When Darnold gets panicky, he forces the ball to Kupp. I could see a Jones pick-six.
DT Christian Barmore vs. RG Anthony Bradford: The biggest mismatch in the game.
DT Milton Williams vs. LG Grey Zabel: I think the rookie has been a little overrated this year. Williams loves this stage.
LB Christian Elliss vs. RB Kenneth Murray: Expect Elliss to attack Murray's pass protection, but the back is also a weapon out of the backfield.
WR Kayshon Boutte vs. CB Josh Jobe: You know all that Cover 6 stuff? This is where Maye is going hunting and I love Boutte in his matchup against Jobe, who can be overmatched physically.
WR Stefon Diggs vs. CB Devon Witherspoon: Patriots are going to need something out of Diggs, and I expect the tough Witherspoon to take him on third downs.
LG Jared Wilson, RG Mike Onwenu vs. Seattle's stunts: They are the Patriots' two weakest against games, especially if you can single up Onwenu in space. They need to hold up.
LG Will Campbell/Wilson vs. Macdonald's overload pressure: Expect the coach to send a lot of crazy stuff at the two rookies.
BEDARD'S GAME PICK
Season: 14-6 straight up, 11-9 spread.
Line: Seahawks -4.5. O/U: 45.5
At this stage, I try not to get too complicated about this. I like the Patriots for the following reasons:
• I'll take Vrabel and McDaniels over Macdonald and Klint Kubiak. They've been through this very unique game multiple times, and I have confidence in their ability to gameplan and adjust. Kubiak just kind of runs his stuff, and you can prepare for it. McDaniels will help Maye find those 3 or 4 plays he's going to need to win.
• I think both QBs are going to make mistakes in this game, maybe some big ones. I have much more confidence in Maye gathering himself and settling down than Darnold.
• The Patriots have been terrific of late, pressuring the QB, and I think they are going to be relentless in going after Darnold. And he'll fold eventually.
• The Patriots are a team of destiny. While they have made a lot of their own breaks, just about everything has gone their way all season. What, that's just going to stop in the last game? I don't see that happening. It's been their season, and it will continue to be.
• The Mike Vrabel Effect. He's shaped this team in his own image from Day 1, and every move he has made has been impeccable. He's created a tremendous TEAM, and they will not let him down.
Patriots 20, Seahawks 16.
