Mike Vrabel may have won three Super Bowls under Bill Belichick as a player with the New England Patriots, but the former Pro Bowl linebacker wants all of that to remain separate from his coaching career.
Vrabel played under Belichick in New England for eight seasons from 2001-08. He does not view himself as being part of the so-called Belichick coaching tree, however, as he was never a coach on Belichick’s staff. Vrabel reiterated that during an interview with Michael Felger of 98.5 The Sports Hub on Monday.
“When you see me and you see me coach or you see me interact, do you feel like I’m from that lineage? Me neither,” Vrabel said. “I never worked for Bill Belichick as a coach. There’s a lot of things I learned from him as a player that I’ve used. But just like with Urban Meyer or just like with anybody else that I’ve worked for, I try to take those things but do it in my own personality and my own style.”
That was Vrabel’s way of making it clear that he does not model his coaching style after that of Belichick, who is now the head coach at North Carolina. Vrabel was then asked if he would hire Belichick if Vrabel owned an NFL team.
His response to that question was even more telling.
“We’d go through the process,” Vrabel said with a smile. “There’s a hiring process.”
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