There might not have been a bigger character at the 2026 NFL Annual Meetings than Mike Vrabel, who, according to Bills beat reporter Matt Parrino, walked over to Joe Brady’s table and crumpled up his name plate.
Chalk it up to some playful AFC East hazing from Vrabel, who’s been busting chops since he was winning Super Bowls with the New England Patriots as a player, never mind as their head coach on Sundays.
Vrabel was at it again during an over 30-minute session with members of the media on Tuesday morning in Phoenix. When a reporter asked him about drafting a tight end this year, for example, he responded by saying he loves tight ends and would draft nine of them if he could.
He even had to break character at one point when he was asked about the Patriots hosting the Philadelphia Eagles for joint practices this summer. The exchange was classic Vrabel, but his actual feelings on the subject might hint at something bigger for Eagles fans.
“Why did you want to work with the Eagles and Nick Sirianni, and what do you hope to get out of those practices?” the reporter asked.
“I didn’t, and I didn’t think we were gonna, but I guess Nick said something yesterday, so I guess we’re kinda forced into doing it,” Vrabel quipped, quickly breaking any tension with a wry smile.
“They’re a talented football team. I have a lot of respect for Nick. I have a lot of respect for Howie, Mr. Lurie, just their consistency over the last four or five years of very good football. I felt like that would be a good opportunity for us to go against a really good football team.”
What Mike Vrabel’s comments about the Eagles might signal next
The Patriots and Eagles have seemingly been attached at the hip all offseason, with fans of both teams wondering when (not if) an inevitable trade for A.J. Brown finally goes down.
It was already a match made in heaven. Brown grew up rooting for the Patriots and admitted he "cried his eyes out" when they passed on selecting him in the 2019 draft. The team that did draft him? That was Vrabel’s Tennessee Titans. Vrabel and Brown have remained close, even after the Titans traded Brown to the Eagles during the 2022 draft for a pair of picks, including No. 18 overall.
Both the Eagles and Brown seem ready to part ways this year. The Patriots have been actively trying to surround ascending quarterback Drake Maye with weapons and enforcers up front. As long as the Patriots are willing to play ball on the timing and execute the trade after June 1, to help with the Eagles' $43 million-plus in dead cap charges, per Over the Cap, there’s no reason to believe a deal won’t eventually get done this season.
The only question now is which color jersey Brown will be wearing this August during those joint practices?
The smart bet is on Patriots blue, especially after both Sirianni and GM Howie Roseman did little to end the speculation by repeating “A.J. Brown is a member of the Eagles” while fielding questions from the media. They definitely didn’t say he won’t be traded, so even if it isn’t the Patriots, the chances seem high that Brown will suit up elsewhere in 2026.
Vrabel talked a ton last year about building a program in New England, and it’s not a surprise that he spoke glowingly about what Roseman and Sirianni have built in Philly. Vrabel's teams have swung big trades with Roseman in the past, including the Eagles sending safety Terrell Edmunds and a pair of 2024 draft picks to Tennessee for veteran safety Kevin Byard.
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For what it’s worth, Vrabel recruited Byard to join him in Foxboro during the first wave of free agency this year, and it definitely feels more likely than not that Brown is next on his wish list.