FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel jumped into a pile of players at Wednesday’s practice with the Washington Commanders and came out with a bloodied cheek, which caught the attention of players in the ensuing huddle.
“That’s what we’re trying to build, and it starts with the head coach — intensity, bringing it every day, taking no crap when we’re out there on the field,” quarterback Drake Maye said. “The mentality, I like it. That’s what you want.”
Vrabel later held a bag of ice on his right cheek. The scrum that Vrabel entered came after rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson stepped up to execute a block in blitz pickup against the Commanders’ defense, and suddenly, multiple players were piled up on the field.
“Pass pro is physical. It’s a physical game. Things happen out there,” Maye said. “There’s a time where obviously you don’t want to come out here and fight and get into trouble. At the same time, you don’t want to back down from nobody. So I’m sure Coach will preach that we can’t have that, but at the same time, kind of in the back of our minds, that’s kind of how we want to play — the intensity, when the whistle is going, play hard, and when the whistle stops, get off and get away.”
Maye said Vrabel joked that the team will go back and review the film of Vrabel in the scrum. No players were ejected from practice, and the commotion was extinguished quickly.
“He’s right there with us, man. I think that player comes out in him a little bit too,” tight end Hunter Henry said.
Receiver DeMario “Pop” Douglas said Vrabel’s willingness to jump into the fray showed how much he had his players’ backs — and his sense of humor.
“I said, ‘Coach, what’s wrong with you?’ And he said, ‘You should have seen the other guy,'” Douglas relayed with a smile. “I just saw the scar on his face, but I didn’t know what happened.”
The Patriots host the Commanders in both teams’ preseason opener Friday (7:30 p.m. ET).
Veteran offensive tackle Morgan Moses, who is in his first season playing under Vrabel, referred to him as a players’ coach — noting his background as an outside linebacker with the Steelers, Patriots and Chiefs over 14 seasons.
“He loves what he does. Any time you got a coach you see out there wearing pads and getting punched by guys and doing drills, it makes you want to go harder,” Moses said. “He understands the process as a player and a coach.”
ESPN’s John Keim contributed to this report.
