Mike Vrabel on whether Patriots have been disrespected: Doesn’t matter, we’re in the Super Bowl
After the Patriots beat the Texans in the divisional round of the playoffs, defensive tackle Milton Williams shared his feeling that the team’s defense has not gotten the respect it deserves this season.
Williams expressed similar sentiments to Cameron Wolfe of NFL Media after beating the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game and he got more fuel for his belief when the Seahawks were installed as favorites for Super Bowl LX. The days leading up to that game will likely feature discussion of the Patriots’ weak regular season schedule and the absence of quarterback Bo Nix in the Broncos’ lineup, but the question of disrespect isn’t of interest to head coach Mike Vrabel.
“It doesn’t matter,” Vrabel said during a Tuesday appearance on WEEI. “We’re in the Super Bowl. Like, we can pump this thing up for 10 days. I mean, we’re all compensated very well for what we do, so I don’t think there’s any disrespect from this building, or my appreciation for our football team. It doesn’t bother me.”
That’s the public response one would expect from Vrabel, but his view on how his players approach things is a little different. He said he’s fine with “however they have to get ready to play the football game” and one imagines that Williams’s feelings will get some more play around the team before they hit the field in Santa Clara.
