‘A lot different than us’

SAN FRANCISCO — Mike Vrabel didn’t take the bait Tuesday morning when requested if whether or not the Patriots’ earlier triumphs within the Tremendous Bowl could be one thing he’ll play up as his staff tries to safe a seventh Lombardi Trophy. 

“I don’t know the place the dynasty would come from,” Vrabel stated. “Perhaps the groups that I used to be part of prior to now, you possibly can think about that, however we’re simply attempting to construct a program. First 12 months of this system, we ended up right here. We’re enthusiastic about it, and we’re able to go. We will probably be able to go.”

Devin McCourty shared the same sentiment on Tuesday when requested to map out the similarities and variations between this present New England roster and the dynasties of yesteryear. 

Sure, there are a couple of acquainted faces like Vrabel and Robert Kraft in place, whereas the emblem stays unchanged from the years when Tom Brady and his teammates reigned over the league for 20 years. 

However, McCourty believes lots has modified since his days in Foxborough. 

“Our championship groups had Tom Brady on them,” McCourty stated Tuesday. “So yearly we got here into the season and the expectation was to be within the Tremendous Bowl. This staff got here off a four-win season.”

Whereas Drake Maye has asserted himself as a professional MVP candidate this season, narratives resembling New England’s lighter regular-season schedule have seemingly discredited the Patriots’ highway to Tremendous Bowl LX. 

The 2025 Patriots might not instill concern in opponents to the identical diploma because it was through the Brady-Belichick period. However, a revamped New England depth chart — now galvinized beneath Vrabel — doesn’t have to comply with the identical script as earlier Patriots groups to seek out success. 

“I simply suppose they’ve a mentality of — we will go and beat anyone,” McCourty stated. “We will try this. We had that. However I believe you possibly can most likely argue all championship groups have that. So I believe it is a credit score to them of getting the proper guys that create and imagine. Having the proper head coach that creates perception. He coaches in a mode that, once more, I’m not within the locker room — it feels completely completely different than the coach I performed for. 

“It feels completely different, it seems to be completely different, nevertheless it has loads of just like the foundational items to it, to how they wish to carry out and what they wish to be about. However I believe they’ve been loads completely different than us, [but] they discovered the identical sort of success.”

The sight of Vrabel headbutting his gamers and hugging them after victories could also be a stark distinction from Belichick’s brooding presence.

However, McCourty believes that the Patriots’ centered — albeit lighter — strategy ought to be welcomed on a staff with quite a few gamers getting their first style of a Tremendous Bowl. It was a luxurious that McCourty and lots of of his teammates might need taken with no consideration through the dynasty’s heyday. 

“Once we received a Tremendous Bowl, the subsequent query was, ‘Hey, are we going to win once more subsequent 12 months? It wasn’t like, ‘Hey, we will’t look forward to the parade or the ring ceremony.’ Everyone was like, Are you guys gonna win subsequent 12 months,” McCourty stated. “However I believe now there’s an pleasure. … Complete reverse of what we went by. 

“I performed on some nice groups, but when we didn’t win the Tremendous Bowl, it was like, ‘Man, this season was a failure. And that’s not true. And I believe they’re attending to get pleasure from it. A variety of the fellows I talked to — I informed them, you’re going to have media day by day. You’re going to do all these items, man. Simply take all of it in. I look again now and I see footage or movies of a few of the issues I did, and it’s superior to know that you just did it, as a result of it’s a reminder that it occurred.”

McCourty — who will probably be a part of NBC’s broadcast staff for Tremendous Bowl LX between the Patriots and Seahawks — expressed gratitude for getting an opportunity to be on web site as his staff tries to as soon as once more plant its flag atop the NFL summit. 

“I believe this staff is incomes their proper to be within the Tremendous Bowl,” McCourty stated. “However I believe for all of us former guys, like, there comes alternative. And I’m a fan. I nonetheless watch these guys. I used to be up there final week interviewing them, shopping for Patriot jerseys for my children — who are actually Patriots followers. So I get pleasure from that. 

“I’m not one of many guys that looks like I hope they lose, to guard what we did. … I went and I received to speak to Malcolm Butler about his play at Tremendous Bowl XLIX that will have by no means occurred if this staff didn’t make it to the Tremendous Bowl. So I at all times suppose it’s a cool alternative.”

 

Conor Ryan is a workers author protecting the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Pink Sox for Boston.com, a job he has held since 2023.