Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Alert: Mike Vrabel Channeling Belichick? | Christian Gonzalez: Savior?

Starting point is 00:00:00 Mike Vrable could be pulling a page out of Bill Belichick's book. That's where we start. This is Locked-on Patriots. You are Locked-on Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast, part of the Locked-on Podcasts Network, your team every day. And I am your host, Nick Cattles, born and raised in New England, been covering the Patriots the last 16 years. on the radio online. Also co-host of the Greg Bedard Patriots podcast with Nick Cattels. And a reminder, we go live every Sunday after the Patriots game. So we'll be doing that again this Sunday. On today's episode, we'll tell you why a Christian Gonzalez return would help this

Starting point is 00:00:46 defense, but not save it. Also, it's time for Mike Grable to make a significant decision, even if he doesn't necessarily want to. But first, let's discuss the handling of Drake May. We appreciate you joining the show, making us your first listen. And for being an everydayer, the Lockdown Patriots podcast is a proud part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. And don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe, help a brother out with this podcast. And this episode is brought to by Mazda. Like our players, we sweat every detail because when you make every move count, pulling off the unexpected is only the beginning. Stay tuned later for highlights in this week's moving the game forward.

Starting point is 00:01:25 Mazda move and be moved. Drake May had the best start of his NFL career this past weekend in Miami. But yet, he didn't get a game ball. Kind of an interesting post game that played out in front of the cameras. And you could see this on social media. Mike Vrable gave a game ball to a bunch of dudes in the locker room. He gave a game ball to Andy Boregalis. He gave a game ball to Zach Corr.

Starting point is 00:01:51 He gave a game ball to Antonio Gibson, Ramandre Stevenson. But yet, there was no game ball. For the quarterback who just had his best game of his NFL career, that there is no way, know-how on God's Green Earth, you win that game without that quarterback. Now, was this intentional? Was it not intentional? Was this tough love from Mike Vrable onto Drake May? Is this the latest example of a New England head coach being just a little bit tougher,

Starting point is 00:02:21 if not a lot tougher on his quarterback than anybody else in that locker room? Greg Bedard wrote about this at Boston Sports Journal. He wrote the following after the game. Vrable was asked about May's Day and, well, this isn't the way I would have answered it, writes Bedard. Quote, I think there's a lot of good things and a lot of things we'll have to fix the command and the operation. And when he feels that lull, that's when we've got to tighten the screws on these guys and get them set faster and get them out of huddle faster and really push them. Vrable said, speaking of May, he's a jockey. and he's got to know what the flow of the team looks like offensively.

Starting point is 00:02:58 We had a couple of penalties and false starts. Again, things we really aren't going to be able to overcome eventually, unquote. So Mike Rable asked a question about May could have said a lot of things. He could have thrown a bouquet at the feet of Drake May and said the kid was terrific. He was excellent. That's the best game I've ever seen him have. I thought that he was really good. I thought that he led us to this victory.

Starting point is 00:03:24 but he went a different way, which is interesting. Now, Bidar does write the following at Boston Sports Journal in his defense, as in Vrabels. He did clean it up a bit on Monday. Here's what Vrable said about his quarterback on Monday, quote, hugely efficient. The ball went where it was supposed to go. He was decisive. I thought he did a great job of transferring up into the pocket, setting his depth, and then transferring up being really good with the football, unquote.

Starting point is 00:03:52 So maybe this is just a case of. of Vrable going back, looking at the game again, really combing through this film, looking at Drake May, and said, you know what, maybe he was better than I thought he was, or man, May was really good. Maybe that's it. Mike Vrable had a second shot to watch the game and said, you know, if I'm asked about May, which I'm certainly going to be asked about May on the Monday press conference, I'm going to, I'm going to be a little bit nicer to my quarterback.

Starting point is 00:04:29 But it does. It does. The way that it was handled in the post game, the fact that May did not get a game ball, maybe, maybe Vrable just didn't think about it. Maybe he was thinking of the final quarter, right? Antonio Gibson, Andy Boragallis, Marte Mapu, guys that made big plays in that final quarter. So maybe it was just an oversight by the head coach. And we leave room for that to be the case. But what else could be going on with how Vrable approached his QB after the best game that QB has ever had in the NFL?

Starting point is 00:05:03 One option, one possibility is that Vrable looks at this like I think all of us should look at Drake May and the younger players on this team and understand, appreciate, and embrace the idea that development is not linear. guys usually if you're watching the video they don't usually go like this right athletes don't usually go like this the straight line up to the very tippity top usually doesn't work out that way there's bumps in the road and maybe the way that Vrabel handled Drake May in the post game in Miami maybe this is a case of the head coach saying look yeah he had a really good game but let's not allow him to get too far ahead let's not start jumping to conclusions here. We know that Vrable is big on the details. Maybe he just wants to make sure that his quarterback is focused on the details. Vrable understanding, we've got to build a foundation

Starting point is 00:06:00 here. And if I go out there week two, give him the game ball and, you know, just shower him with compliments for three straight minutes, what I'm asked about the QB and the post-game press conference, maybe just maybe that foundation won't be fully set. And then May we'll start thinking ahead. So let's slow everything down. Let's set the foundation, focus on the details, not get too far ahead. Maybe it's a case of Rabel having just very high expectations for his young quarterback. And maybe he looks at the game and says, yeah, he was good, but he wasn't great.

Starting point is 00:06:39 And I think he could be better. And I want to demand better from him. If I go out there and I act like May did no wrong or I act like this was a perfect game for him, what happens the next time? I need to demand more. I need to demand better until I watch a game and say, now that was flawless. Now that was perfect. Now that I have no complaints. Maybe Mike Frable just looks at it says, I have such high expectations for Drake May.

Starting point is 00:07:11 I don't want him to get complacent. And I also want the quarterback to understand that even when he's good, sometimes you're going to lose. You know, even if you're good, you could be really good and lose because this team has a small margin for error. And we have to make sure that he understands that. Because if he's good for 85% of the game, that 15% can truly burn us. We're not talented enough to make a ton of mistakes. Well, you're okay to make mistakes against Miami, I guess, but not against a lot of other teams.

Starting point is 00:07:43 And Mike Vrable could look at this and say, Drake May, you are the quarterback, I have high expectations for you, and I am going to set you to the highest standard possible because you're the guy. You're the franchise. If we're putting up a billboard and my face isn't on it, your face is on it. This could also just be a simple case of Mike Vrable trying to build the leadership qualities within Drake May. by demanding more and understanding that if he demands more from the quarterback, the quarterback is going to give him more, hopefully, if he takes the words of his head coach like gospel. I demand more from you.

Starting point is 00:08:28 You should demand more for me, demand more from each other, and we should get more from each other in this head coach quarterback relationship. And because you're the quarterback, you're going to have to ask other guys for more. You're going to have to ask the other guys to be better. You're going to have to lead this offense. And if Kyle Williams at some point during this season has five catches for 70 yards and a touchdown, you can celebrate that.

Starting point is 00:08:55 You could talk about that in the moment, but you best be ready to go to Williams and demand more from your wide receiver. You are the quarterback. You set the example. Or maybe we just break it down to its simplest. And if Mike Vrable didn't just miss this, it wasn't just a simple oversight, maybe Mike Vrable just didn't believe the quarterback needs a lollipop. Maybe he believes that Drake May is already supremely confident. He doesn't need the pat on his back.

Starting point is 00:09:28 Maybe Mike Vrable feels like the guys he gave the pat on the back with the game ball are the guys that need that pat on the back. And he looks at Drake May and says, I have high expectations. He has high expectations. Yes, he was really good, but I don't need to tell him he was really good right after the game. I need to instill confidence in the Antonio Gibson's, Ramandre Stevenson's, Andy Boregolus, and Marte Mapus, and Zach Coors, because those are the guys that truly need the lollipop. They truly need the gold star on the paper to take home and put on the fridge. It's interesting. We'll see if Mike Rable continues to handle Drake May differently than some of the other players on the team.

Starting point is 00:10:14 It's going to be fascinating. I have to believe he has a reason for it. Coming up, the latest on Christian Gonzalez and why the Pats can certainly hope that he will help this defense and he should, but they should not bank on Gonzalez's eventual return to save their defense. This is Lockdown Patriots, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. This episode is brought to by Mazda's moving the game forward. For those who believe it's not just about playing the game, it's about redefining it. There are moments that do more than put points on the board.

Starting point is 00:10:53 They move crowds, move culture, and keep moving the game forward. This week's moment that moved the game forward is Antonio Gibson's 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Now, not only was Gibson's kickoff return the perfect response to Miami's punt return for a TD seconds earlier, it also put the Patriots up for good on Sunday. Gibson's kickoff return for a TD helped the team keep moving forward. And so did Gibson's teammates who helped block for the big time play and score. Don't forget about those guys. Anthony Jennings, Jack Westover, and many other Patriots opening the door for Antonio Gibson to get that 90-yard. kickoff return. Patriots never look back victorious in Miami.

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Starting point is 00:12:38 That's promo code L-O-C-K-E-D-O-N-N-FL-L-L-N-FL for $20 off. Swipe, tap, ticket, go, download GameTime today. Mike Vrable was asked about Christian Gonzalez on Monday and whether or not Gonzalez would be coming back this week if there was a chance. And Vrable said, quote, there's a chance. There's a chance. And then Vrable said, there's a chance a lot of things could happen. Now, I want everybody, including myself, to understand this.

Starting point is 00:13:10 Christian Gonzalez will absolutely help this defense when he returns. He's an all-pro corner. Of course he's going to help this defense. And we will break down some of the ways he would or will help this defense if when he comes back. But I also want to appreciate the idea that Gonzalez is not going to be a savior for this defense. just because he is an all-pro corner doesn't mean he's going to walk onto the football field and everything is figured out. There's Christian Gonzalez, everything is solved.

Starting point is 00:13:41 Let's start with the help before we get to the not a savior part. If when Christian Gonzalez returns, whether it's this week, two weeks, three weeks, he comes back that allows the defensive staff to open up the playbook. It allows you to blitz and not be as worried to blitz. because you trust that Christian Gonzalez and man coverage is going to do his job and be one of the best shutdown corners in football like he was last year. It allows you to do different coverages, give offenses different looks, and you've done that through the first couple of weeks,

Starting point is 00:14:18 but you have more confidence in your ability to be multiple on the defensive side of the ball when you add an all-pro cornerback. You also can look at Christian Gonzalez and simply say, that's their best weapon, shut it down. Imagine Christian Gonzalez against Brock Bowers if Mike Vrable and his staff decided to do that week one. Do you think Bowers has that kind of second half? Does he have those couple of big plays that he had? What if you had Christian Gonzalez this past week against the dolphins and he would be able to defend one of Tyreek Hill or Jalen Waddle? Do you think that that third and very long, that ridiculous pass by Tuatunga Vialoa that somehow some way was caught by Hill, do you think that happens on Christian Gonzalez?

Starting point is 00:15:06 I certainly do not. So it just allows you to breathe a little bit easier to look at a top talent. Let's say D.K. Metcalf this weekend for the Steelers and for you to look at D.K. Metcalf as a coach and say Christian Gonzalez is the answer not worried about D.K. Metcalfe. the top weapon eraser. And if you have Gonzalez to go along with Carlton Davis, that combination, it'll help you take away the easy stuff from an offense. Let me put some shine on Carlton Davis for a minute because these two guys are going to be a combo. That was the vision.

Starting point is 00:15:44 Carlos Lopez on Twitter posted against the dolphins, there were 36 routes run while Davis was out there on the field. Carlton Davis was targeted once. He was targeted one time the entire game. He gave up one catch. It was for four yards. And Carlton Davis also had four tackles. And I thought he was pretty physical on the perimeter during that game.

Starting point is 00:16:14 Evan Lazar wrote about Carlton Davis at Patriots.com. He wrote the following. The dolphins did not test Davis much downfield, choosing to funnel the ball elsewhere, which was a wise choice. Davis was targeted. Now, according to Lazars numbers, Davis was targeted four times for a whopping minus 0.4 air yards per target, allowing a few short catches, mostly has flat corner and cover two. So you have Carlos Lopez with certain metrics saying one time targeted, one catch, four yards allowed.

Starting point is 00:16:48 You've got Evan Lazars saying that Carlton Davis was targeted four times, and there were a couple of short catches in the flat, and there were no big deal taken care of by Davis. And if you have Carlton Davis and Christian Gonzalez on the field at the same time, it is absolutely unequivocally going to help your ability to limit big plays downfield. As I just mentioned with that, Tyreek Hill play against Alex Austin. And if you can play some press man physical coverage, which I would anticipate Christian Gonzalez and Carlton Davis doing it, if you could have both your outside corners playing man press coverage,

Starting point is 00:17:23 at least from time to time, you're going to force the quarterback to hold it longer. And that's how you take the easy stuff away. But Christian Gonzalez is not going to be a savior. He's not going to be the answer to all of your problems. He's not some magic elixir. He'll help, but he won't completely solve because the Patriots have to solve their linebacker issue. We talked about it.

Starting point is 00:17:46 On both episodes earlier this week, Robert Spillane, Christian Ellis, not doing a good enough job, whether it's against the run or the past, the mistackles, the bad coverage. Christian Gonzalez is not going to be able to cover his guy and then also play defense for Roberts, Pauline and Christian Ellis. You still have to solve that linebacker issue. The second level has to be figured out sooner rather than later. And don't forget, if you are going to play man coverage and don't forget the idea that Mike Vrable said to the media that the idea of the end,

Starting point is 00:18:23 envision of this defense is take that cat defense right think you said take take that cat defense something along those lines which is you know easy to explain as christian gonzalez you take that cat carlton davis you take that cat we're good to go if you are going to play more man coverage with both your outside corners out there and healthy if we get to that point that opens the door for offenses to use motion, identify what you're doing with the man coverage and to try to match up their running backs against your linebackers or to try to line up their tight ends against your safeties or linebackers. So if you do play man coverage more often with your two outside corners healthy and able and out there, then get ready because offenses will

Starting point is 00:19:14 immediately look to take advantage, get that match up one-on-one against. the lineback. You also have to look at this and say Christian Gonzalez is not a savior because he can't play safety. And Craig Woodson was not as good in week two as he was in week one. He's a rookie. We're going to see the ups and downs again. It's not linear.

Starting point is 00:19:36 Is linear a straight line? I think it is. Straight line. Not going up. But you look at the safeties in Craig Woodson and Jalen Hawkins. It's not as if Christian Gonzalez is going to be able to play safety for you. GTFB, make sure those guys are back there defending that back end and not giving up plays over the top.

Starting point is 00:19:55 Christian Gonzalez is not going to solve the mistackling as a team. Everybody's missing tackles, not just the linebackers. He's not going to be able to help the angles of the safeties and the linebackers on these run plays. He's not going to be able to help everything. He's not a one-man fix it all. So he will help. And with Gonzalez, whenever he gets back, hopefully it's this week.

Starting point is 00:20:21 If he's back this week, he will help. You'll have more support for the second level. But it's not going to be the end-all, be-all. There are a number of things with this defense that have to get figured out with or without Christian Gonzalez. It'll certainly help, but he won't save the day. and we should not have those kinds of expectations. We should want to see improvement from everybody else, whether or not your best defensive player is out there.

Starting point is 00:20:54 It's time for the Pats to make a significant decision they likely don't want to make. That's next as we continue with today's episode of Lockdown Patriots, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. The NFL season is here, and Fandul is making sure you're ready for kickoff, with a can't miss offer right now listen to this new customers can bet just five dollars and if your bet wins you'll get three hundred dollars in bonus bets to use across the app check out fandool i love using it if it's however i like to bet player props building the same game parlay or even jumping in live as the action unfold just sit down on a sunday with some buddies

Starting point is 00:21:34 have fanduel open and continue to check on it as you watch football nothing's better it makes every game more exciting, whether you're watching your team or just keeping an eye on your fantasy lineup. And here's the cool thing. It's quick. It's easy. And it's the best way to add a little energy to Sundays. Again, right now, new customers can bet just $5. And if your bet wins, you'll get $300 in bonus bets you use across the app. So the question I ask all the time, all you're ready to play? Download the Fandul app now by visiting fandul.com to get started. That's Fandul.com to place your first $5 bet. The paths have to make a decision on the defensive staff and what to do with Terrell Williams.

Starting point is 00:22:15 The time has come. You're getting ready for week three, inching closer to a full month into the season. You were without Terrell Williams in Miami. He was not around last week because of a health situation. And as we've been saying, we obviously hope that the human being, Terrell Williams, is healthy. We hope that he gets through whatever he's going through. Some of these challenges over the past several months for him, it's not easy. so we hope that he is going to be on the mend here and get better.

Starting point is 00:22:44 But for the football team, Mike Vrable's got to make a decision. And Vrable was asked by the media during his Monday press conference, what was going on, what's the latest with Torel Williams? And Vrable said that, quote, Terrell will be around. I don't quite fully know in what capacity, unquote. I don't quite fully know in what capacity. You've got to make a decision.

Starting point is 00:23:10 You've got to look at this and say, is Terrell Williams are a defensive coordinator, or is he not? Are we going to slide him to a senior advisory role, a consultant role? Maybe he'll keep the defensive coordinator title out of respect. But you've got to make this decision. For continuity's sake, you've got to make a decision. You want to make sure that your play caller is going to be there,

Starting point is 00:23:36 week in and week out, working on the game plans, understanding the weaknesses and the strengths, not missing any kind of time, and he's able to be fully invested. I'm sure Terrell Williams wants to be fully invested. Loves the game of football, has been waiting his entire life to have this opportunity as a defensive coordinator. But you've got to do what's best for the team. That's what you ask from the players. If you're Mike Vrable, that's what you ask from yourself.

Starting point is 00:24:03 and that's what you've got to do dealing with this situation no matter how difficult it is and Terrell Williams and Mike Vrable are close really good relationship and it won't be easy it can't be easy for Mike Vrable to just sit back and say you know what we'll slide Terrell Williams

Starting point is 00:24:18 into the background put them on that shelf and you know we'll dust them off maybe in 2026 but you need a play caller you need a play caller that you know is going to be there You need somebody who's going to be the main communicator with the defense.

Starting point is 00:24:37 And you want that message. You want that voice to be the same message and voice throughout the season. You want consistency. You don't want Zach Corr being the guy for a couple of weeks. Then he leaves goes to be the inside linebackers coach. And then Terrell Williams takes over. And they've got different ways of communicating with different players. Maybe they get, you know, different levels of play from different guys.

Starting point is 00:25:00 You want that consistency. You want that continuity. You want to know how your defensive play caller is going to handle a certain situation. You want those consistent decisions. So that's number one. Number two, it's likely just best for Terrell Williams. I mean, I think a lot of people overlook because we just, we watch the games on Sundays, we talk about the team all week long, we see the press conferences.

Starting point is 00:25:30 I'm not sure that people understand or not. everybody understands how tough it is to be an NFL coach, just a coach, just a positional coach, just we're not even talking about coordinator or head coach. These are long hours, my friends. Terrell Williams, I'm going to guess, puts in when he's D.C. and he's healthy and he's in the building all week, 70, 80, 90 hours. Do you really want to put Terrell Williams through that? Can you bank on Terrell Williams to be there?

Starting point is 00:26:07 Even if he's there this week and next week, can you bank on him being there three weeks from now for 80, 90 hours? I was talking to Greg Bedard on our podcast earlier today, and Greg put it perfectly. Do you think Terrell Williams was in the building 2.30 in the morning on the Monday night, Tuesday morning, sitting there grinding film? I would find that hard to believe, given what he's going through.

Starting point is 00:26:33 And he shouldn't. He shouldn't be doing that. And then you've got to think about the travel. You've got to think about the stress of the around the clock job trying to get better. It just feels like it would be best for Terrell Williams and best for the team to make sure that Terrell Williams, let's borrow a phrase that was all over the place last week with Drake May. it just feels like it would be best for everybody involved if Terrell Williams had less on his plate. Let him get healthy.

Starting point is 00:27:07 Let him get through whatever he has to get through. Give him the helping hand. But you just, you got to make this decision. And if Terrell Williams gets a clean bill of health, maybe you say he's going to stay with us and he's going to be our defensive quarter. He could stay with you, but maybe you say he's going to be our D.C.

Starting point is 00:27:27 but he was given a clean bill of health just a few weeks ago. He missed a lot of, a lot of, you know, early camp. And he obviously felt like he was going to be okay. And he obviously felt like he was going to be okay. Or he would not have come back. He would not have had the job of D.C. for week one. So can you really be confident that even if he is given the clean bill of health, that he's going to stay and be locked in?

Starting point is 00:27:55 I think it's best for him and it's best for him. and it's best for everybody, make him a senior advisor, a consultant, whatever. He can be in the building when he can be in the building from a health standpoint. He can be there for advice. But I just, I would not put that responsibility on him right now with what's been going on the last six to eight months. I just wouldn't. And we don't know the specifics, but it's obviously significant enough for him to miss a major portion of, you know, the first half of camp, the early camp process and not even be in New England have to stay.

Starting point is 00:28:30 I think it was Detroit from his time with the Lions. And now he gets pulled away after one week on the job in the regular season. So it's just best for everybody. Now, when this decision is made, begs the question, will Mike Vrable actually stick with the decision? What happens if the defense doesn't improve over the next few weeks? what happens if Mike Vrable realizes Zach Corr, his learning curve is a little bit steeper than I might have thought. And let's also not forget that Zach Corr is the positional coach for the inside linebackers.

Starting point is 00:29:07 And what have we talked about ad nauseum already about this defense and earlier in the episode? The linebackers being a problem. Do you want to take one of your positional coaches? Do you want to take your inside linebackers coach and put more responsibility on him? Does that mean that the inside linebackers are getting enough attention, enough love from their positional coach? Maybe, maybe not. And I'm not in love with the idea with Mike Vrable being the guy calling the defensive plays. This operation needs work.

Starting point is 00:29:40 It needs to be cleaner. It needs less penalties, less procedural penalties. They need to do a lot of things better. And I want Mike Vrable to be that CEO on top of all of it. making sure that it all gets better. So tough decision, but a decision that I think has to be made. ASAP.

Starting point is 00:30:01 You've got to move forward with the plan. You've got to stick to that plan. You've got to believe in that plan and hope that you improve on that side of the ball. And hope that Terrell Williams gets better. And maybe just maybe he's back in 2026 as your defensive coordinator. But you've got to make that call right now. Got to.

Starting point is 00:30:20 All right. That wraps up this edition of lockdown. Patriots, thank you for making us your first listen and for being an everydayer. Reach out to me on Twitter at Nick C. Radio. Don't forget to throw a comment in on the YouTube channel. Don't forget to hit that like button. It means a lot to us. And don't forget to subscribe, trying to get to 7,000 subscribers.

Starting point is 00:30:38 That's the next goal. We can do it with your help. And for your second listen, get a double dose of Lockdown NFL, that podcast with Tyler the Madman Roland and Tony Wiggins. Find Lockdown NFL on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcast. Have a great day, and we will see you tomorrow with a crossover edition. We'll talk Patriot Steelers. Until then, be well.

Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Alert: Mike Vrabel Channeling Belichick? | Christian Gonzalez: Savior?

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