INDIANAPOLIS - Command. Confidence. Control. Mike Vrabel sat in front of gathered Boston media members shortly after his podium stint Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine and made you believe anything was possible, especially against the backdrop of last season's learn-as-we-go approach that never actually took root, only water, gallons and gallons of water. This is Vrabel's team now; his fingerprints are - and will be - all over it.
"Well, I wouldn't be here, and I wouldn't have wanted to be the head coach here if I wasn't comfortable in my impact on the roster," he said when asked who has the final say.
Yes, Eliot Wolf and Matt Groh remain. Both are here in Indianapolis to help assist in the process of finding new - and better - players. But so are Vrabel's people - VP of Player Personnel Ryan Cowden and VP of Football Operations and Strategy John 'Stretch' Streicher (he was sitting about 10 yards behind the head coach during this session). They will influence how the Patriots proceed, and trust me, most involved (not sure how ownership views this) are aware this team is a long way from where it needs to be.
“I think what the roster looks like today is going to be vastly different than what it looks like at the end of August," said Vrabel, acknowledging the need for improvement.
How do the Pats get there? The first step will be in free agency, which kicks off on March 10th. As of right now, chatter persists that the Bengals will not let Tee Higgins get there, signaling they are willing to use the franchise tag on the not-yet 26-year-old receiver. The Ravens are publicly hopeful they will retain left tackle Ronnie Stanley. The two sides will meet his week in Indy. Those are arguably the two biggest ticket items that the Pats have their eyes on, and their potential removal from the market is a blow; make no mistake about it.
The Pats will need to be flexible over these coming weeks and months. If one door closes, the organization must know where to go next. And if that passageway is blocked, don't just shrug your shoulders and say we tried. Find another way, like say through the trenches both offensively and defensively. That's in Vrabel's wheelhouse, and that's where and how he helped turn the Titans into a dangerous team for a handful of years.
"We're not afraid of anything," declared Vrabel. "We just have to have options, right? You can't just say give me one - We're going to get this guy - because you're not going to bat 1.000. Everybody else is trying to go for the same player. So having a really detailed plan and approach is probably the only thing that I would make sure that we are doing, which I believe we are, and then being able to quickly pivot on to the next option and understand where that line is.
"We're just not going to sign players, just to sign them, but making sure that we have a plan in place for, okay, if it's not this player, then is it this player? And then it's this player, and then that, that's what I want to make sure that we do."
Earlier in the day, Vrabel acknowledged that teams overspend in free agency. That's not groundbreaking, but some executives and coaches will dance around that, not wanting to automatically give the media/fan base instant ammunition. But that's reality.
Is someone like Higgins worth Justin Jefferson's money? Hell no. They aren't the same level of player, but if one's available and the other is not, and he happens to be the best - or one of the best - players at the position in free agency, then that's how it will play. The history of the league is littered with examples. The Pats have had their own in recent years (I'm looking at you, Nelson Agholor and Jonnu Smith). Not every guy will hit or hit to the price point they're being paid, but sometimes you gotta take an educated gamble and hope it plays in your favor.
“When I went to Houston my first time coaching in the NFL, I was working for Bill O’Brien, and they had this field that was in trays, 6 foot by 6 foot. And I said, ‘Why do you guys have grass in a dome?’ And they said, ‘Well, we think it would be good for free agency.’ And I said, ‘The only thing free agents care about is green – and it’s not grass.’ So that’s a good place to start," laughed Vrabel.
“You’ve got to be able to pay them according to the market and what somebody else is willing to pay them. I think you talk about our program and what we want to do and, the people we have in our building and the vision that we have for it, and how we’re going to use them. Players we’ve developed in the past. ‘Here’s what we’ve done, here’s what we will do, here’s where we see you fitting in.’ And if that works for you, then let’s make it happen, and it’s good for both sides.”
The Pats are also armed with serious draft capital. They own four of the top 77 picks, including number four overall. What happens in free agency will undoubtedly influence what they do there, so it's safe to say things are fluid.
"I don't think anybody could be able to say for certain what they're going to do right now," said Vrabel. "People always ask, 'Who are you going to take?' Well, tell us who goes 1, 2 and 3 and I'll have a better idea to tell you what we may do at 4.
"I think we would always want to entertain any offer somebody had that we felt like could strengthen our football team. To say what that's going to be right now, I don't think we would have a great idea."
Maybe not the specific individual, but Vrabel does know precisely what he wants in a player and what he wants in the football team he and his people are about to build. That vision in Foxborough didn't exist a season ago. It does now.