The New England Patriots continued their hot start under Mike Vrabel in Week 5, pulling off a stunning 23-20 upset win over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday Night Football.
At 3-2, the Patriots are off to their best start in six years. With one more victory, they’ll match their win total from each of the last two seasons.
New England has improved dramatically on both sides of the ball under Vrabel. After ranking 30th in scoring and 22nd in points allowed last year, the Patriots rank above average in both categories this season.
While the personnel are better and Drake Maye has taken a significant leap in Year 2, much of the improvement stems from having Vrabel at the helm. After winning three Super Bowls as a linebacker for New England and a Coach of the Year award with the Tennessee Titans, the 50-year-old knows what it takes to win and how to be a great head coach.
On Monday’s episode of “The Herd,” Colin Cowherd praised Vrabel for fixing the Patriots’ culture and transforming them into a playoff-caliber team overnight.
Story continues below advertisement
“This game was about the culture that Mike Vrabel has built and about Drake Maye, now with a legitimate head coach, quickly becoming a franchise star,” Cowherd said.
There was a clear difference between Sunday’s game versus New England’s previous trip to Buffalo last December under Jerod Mayo. The Patriots raced out to a two-touchdown lead but collapsed in the second half, committing three turnovers and allowing the Bills to rally and win by a field goal.
Story continues below advertisement
This time around, there was no collapse by New England, which won on a last-minute field goal.
With Vrabel leading the way, Cowherd believes the Patriots look like a playoff team this year.
“Between Josh McDaniels, the culture, Vrabel, the intelligence, this team’s a playoff team,” Cowherd said. “They check all the boxes a playoff team does. Toughness, resilient, can win on the road, excellent young quarterback, they’ve spent their money in the right places.”
Story continues below advertisement
New England still has a long way to go, but Vrabel clearly has the team moving in the right direction again.
