Patriots' Mike Vrabel Praises WR's Growth After Vulnerable Essay

Two years ago, Kayshon Boutte couldn't get his second foot inbounds in the New England Patriots' season-opening loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Fast forward to his third season, and he's making big plays in his first playoff game.

Boutte finished the 16-3 win over the Los Angeles Chargers with four grabs for 66 yards in his postseason debut. A large chunk of that yardage — a 42-yard scamper in the third quarter — helped set up one of New England's three field goals in the game. All the while, he was questionable coming into the game with a hamstring injury.

This all comes on the heels of a vulnerable essay Boutte penned for The Players' Tribune, called "How The Hell Did I Get Here???," where he details his addiction to gambling as a minor in college. He told a story about how he lost $90,000 dollars while at LSU, and once walked out of Patriots training camp one day.

Following the win, his head coach opened up about his wide receiver's honesty and maturation process, both on and off the field.

The Patriots Continue To Unlock Kayshon Boutte's Potential

"Well, that's not easy to do," Mike Vrabel said the next day. "I told him I know that will help a lot of people. He's, I would say, a private person, but I have seen a lot of growth from him personally. It's important to him. This team means a lot to him. He competes. He seems to always kind of come through when we need him, just like he did again last night. For him to be able to open up and share those things publicly and as candidly as he did, I was really proud of him. I said that immediately when I saw it, and I think it just shows a lot of growth. That's not easy to do."

Boutte was one of a number of Patriots players to get involved in the playoff victory. After back-to-back seasons where his team ended the year with four wins, it felt good for the young pass catcher to get a taste of the postseason life.