Mike Vrabel talks A.J. Brown, Patriots draft, and other takeaways from NFL owners’ meetings

"Championships will remain the goal. That will never change."

Mike Vrabel spoke with the media for over 30 minutes on Tuesday.in Phoenix. AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin

March 31, 2026

5 minutes to read

Speaking to reporters at the annual NFL owners’ meetings in Phoenix, Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel touched on several topics with reporters, including expectations for next season, the upcoming NFL Draft, A.J. Brown, and much more.

Beyond his comments regarding TreVeyon Henderson’s recent social media posts, here are six other takeaways from Vrabel’s meeting with the media in Arizona on Tuesday morning:

The latest A.J. Brown update

The waiting game continues between the Patriots and their long-rumored pursuit of Eagles star receiver A.J. Brown.

Mike Vrabel has already spoken highly of Brown this spring, with the two crossing paths with the Tennessee Titans during Vrabel’s first NFL head-coaching role.

While trade whispers continue to swirl around the Patriots and their desire to pry the All-Pro wideout out of Philly, Vrabel recited a similar script about New England’s interest in the veteran on Tuesday.

“We’ve talked about this since last January. We’re gonna try to do everything we can to strengthen our roster, through the draft, through free agency, multiple ways of player acquisition, Vrabel said. “So, anything that we can continue to do to strengthen the roster, we’re going to try to do.”

If New England eventually comes to terms with the Eagles on a deal for Brown, it likely won’t happen until after June 1, given the current dead-cap implications for Philadelphia if they move Brown before that deadline.

Setting expectations for Maye

Drake Maye’s ascension from promising rookie to legitimate MVP candidate played a critical role in New England’s unexpected run to Super Bowl LX in February.

But, at just 23 years old, Maye still has plenty of room to grow going into his third year in the NFL ranks.

Vrabel was asked on Tuesday about what strides he wants to see his quarterback make in 2026.

“I think his ability to control the game at the line of scrimmage,” Vrabel said. “Whether that’s operationally, getting us into a better play. Continue to take ownership of the offense.

He’s an extension of Josh [McDaniels], and when Josh sends the play in, we want Drake to own it and bring it to life with cadence, communication, motion. There’s nothing physically. He’s very talented, so continue to push him to lead and orchestrate and conduct the offense.”

High standards

During his meeting with the media on Monday, team owner Robert Kraft acknowledged that the 2026 Patriots might have some daunting challenges ahead due to a difficult schedule.

As such, Kraft didn’t want to set any win totals or unreasonable expectations for New England as it tries to get back to the Super Bowl next winter.

“My objective every year is we make the playoffs,” Kraft said. “And as we saw last year, when you’re privileged to make the playoffs, anything can happen.”

Vrabel, however, is setting a bit of a higher standard for his club going into a new season.

“Championships will remain the goal. That will never change,” Vrabel said. “We want to win the division, we want to host playoff games, and we want to compete for championships. We got a taste of that, we saw what that looked like, we saw the environment that it created to be able to play those playoff games at home, which was unbelievable and so much fun.”

Draft plans

New England addressed a few holes on its roster via free agency, adding pickups like Romeo Doubs, Dre’Mont Jones, Kevin Byard, and Alijah Vera-Tucker.

Still, Eliot Wolf, Ryan Cowden, and the rest of New England’s top brass need to bolster the rest of the Patriots’ roster in the 2026 NFL Draft — with the Patriots first on the clock with the 31st overall pick.

Even with New England still needing to shore up its pass-rushing corps, tight-end personnel, and tackle depth, Vrabel cautioned against the Patriots honing in on just one segment of the roster with their valuable draft capital.

“I don’t think you should ever draft for need,” Vrabel said. “That’s not a position that you ever want to be in.”

Given that New England is slotted in near the end of the first round, could the Patriots focus more on a project at No. 31?

“Best player available, hopefully,” Vrabel said. “Maybe we trade up, maybe we trade out. I don’t know. I love being able to work with Eliot and Ryan, their staff, the coaches, and trying to bring that together. I’m trying to bring the coach’s perspective on a player and the personnel side together to bring the best person in there for our football team.”

New England could also hone in on the tight end position during the draft. Hunter Henry is back in 2026, but is 31 years old, while Austin Hooper left in free agency to sign with the Falcons.

“I love ’em. Give me nine of ’em. Bring me as many tight ends as we can get,” Vrabel said of adding tight ends to the roster.

“I hope,” he added when asked if New England might draft a tight end. “Just trying to find the right guy. There’s different [tight ends]. Some are receiving, some more at the line of scrimmage, some a little bit of both. We’ll try to come up with the one that fits us best and see where we can draft one.”

Moving future assets

New England could add an intriguing player with some of their Day 1 and 2 picks in next month’s draft.

But, if the Patriots realistically want to acquire an immediate impact player for 2026 and beyond — like A.J. Brown — they will have to part with some valuable draft capital to seal the deal.

Given that New England is well ahead of schedule and now in the midst of a contention window after last year’s success, Vrabel admitted that the team has to be willing to get uncomfortable if they want to add star talent right away.

“I mean, the compensation is compensation,” Vrabel said. “You have to agree to something and whether it’s capital in this year’s draft… However, you can come to an agreement with another team.

“I’ve never really looked at it as this year, next year, how good the draft is in three years. Just try to come to an agreement. If you make a trade, you just want to try to come to an agreement that both teams feel like they’re getting something, that they, that everybody’s happy.”

Bolstering the QB room

New England’s hopes of making it back to the Super Bowl might rest on Maye’s arm. But, Vrabel acknowledged that the Patriots still need to fill out the QB depth chart behind him.

The Patriots made the call to release veteran backup Joshua Dobbs last week, with Tommy DeVito standing as the next man up under center.

While Maye holds court as New England’s franchise QB, Vrabel acknowledged that New England ideally wants to add another quarterback to their roster at some point this offseason.

“We need a third arm,” Vrabel said. “We’ll try to find a young guy that we can develop and potentially add to the roster, whether that’s on the 53-man or the practice squad.”