When Patriots players knew Mike Vrabel had changed the team's culture

The New England Patriots won their 10th consecutive game and improved to 11-2 on the season via a dominant 33-15 victory over the lowly New York Giants (2-11) on Monday night.

Following the Patriots' latest win, multiple players spoke about when they realized the franchise's culture had changed under first-year head coach Mike Vrabel.

Patriots players quickly bought in after hiring of Mike Vrabel

"I definitely noticed the identity shift and the culture change the moment Vrabes stepped in," offensive tackle Vederian Lowe said, per Mark Daniels of MassLive. "He came in and immediately demanded that we follow the team identity, and he promised that would give us a chance. We all bought it, and here we are." 

Even before the Patriots hired Vrabel in January 2025, analysts and former players noted that he would bring an "incredible" culture shift to a club that missed the playoffs four times across the previous five seasons. Vrabel subsequently had a hand in the Patriots adding multiple "high-character players" to the roster during the offseason. 

The results speak for themselves, as New England enters its Week 14 bye sitting atop the AFC standings. 

"I felt like we set a standard for ourselves (at organized team activities)," running back Rhamondre Stevenson added. "I won’t get into exactly what that was, but I feel like we all bought into it and still stay on it." 

Will Patriots have MVP and COTY?

Second-year quarterback Drake Maye has flourished under Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, so much so that DraftKings Sportsbook had Maye as the betting favorite at -135 odds to claim the MVP Award as of Tuesday morning. Maye thinks Vrabel should be the frontrunner for the NFL's Coach of the Year Award. 

"He’s got my vote, and he’s got a lot of people’s vote," Maye said about Vrabel, per Karen Guregian of MassLive. "He’s got everybody’s vote in this organization and in that locker room, and I’m sure across the league."

On Tuesday, FanDuel Sportsbook had Vrabel as the betting favorite at -195 odds to win the NFL Coach of the Year Award. Meanwhile, the Patriots will now get to enjoy a bit of a break before they begin preparing to host the Buffalo Bills on Dec. 14. 

8-4 Buffalo will face the Cincinnati Bengals (4-8) at home this coming Sunday.