Patriots' Brenden Schooler discusses working under new coach Mike Vrabel

One of the biggest storylines hovering over the New England Patriots this offseason involves first-year New England head coach Mike Vrabel attempting to change the culture of a franchise that missed the playoffs four times over the past five years. 

While speaking with reporters at a Patriots community event on Wednesday, safety and special-teams player Brenden Schooler opened up about life under Vrabel. 

"He’s really demanding a lot from us," Schooler said about Vrabel, as shared by Karen Guregian of MassLive. "In this profession, you have to demand a lot of your players. He’s been nothing but a phenomenal leader, showing us the right path to go down. Just following his lead. He’s been a head coach before, he’s been in our shoes, so there’s no excuse for us not to be able to do whatever he asks us to do."

Long before Vrabel became a NFL Coach of the Year Award winner while serving as head coach of the Tennessee Titans from 2018-23, he earned three Super Bowl rings while playing under Bill Belichick with the Patriots from 2001-08. Patriots tight end Austin Hooper had Vrabel as a head coach in Tennessee, and Hooper previously noted how his current teammates should expect the Patriots Hall of Famer to have "a very strong personality" during springtime workouts. 

More recently, defensive lineman and free-agency signing Milton Williams admitted he got "called out" by Vrabel following what that coach viewed as a disappointing performance during a conditioning drill. Williams insisted such a reaction would "help the other guys" perform on the practice field. 

"Obviously, we’re learning new schemes, and we’re still getting to know everybody. But it’s having that same standard," Schooler added. "That standard hasn’t changed. So demanding us to try our best every single day we walk in the building. I know he says, obviously, nothing’s going to be perfect right now. As long as you don’t make the same mistake twice and keep putting one foot in front of the other, that’s all he’s really asking of us right now." 

Mayo had no experience working as a head coach at a high level before last year, and he was tasked with immediately replacing a living legend in Belichick. Mayo seemingly wasn't ready to be the main man for a NFL franchise throughout the 2024 season, but Vrabel had nothing to prove to players the minute he walked back into the Patriots' facility.