Comments on: Upon his retirement, an ode to Mike Vrabel’s career

By: Deb

Deb — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 16:45:26 +0000

@dirtdawg55 …

That’s just what my brother said. But Vrabel certainly shined with Belichick. I guess he ended up exactly where he was meant to be.

By: guypatsfan

guypatsfan — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 14:02:23 +0000

Ten catches as a tight end, ten touchdowns. You’d think teams would have wised up to the Pats whenever they’d see Vrabel in the game as a tight end, but noooo! He’d still be wide open and make the catch!

Mr. Vrabel, all of New England loved you when you were here. You were one of the rocks on which our championship defense was built. Best of luck on your new career, and i have a feeling you’ll be coaching in the NFL before too long (hopefully with the Pats).

By: dirtdawg55

dirtdawg55 — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 10:34:40 +0000

I was sad to see him go from the Steelers, but he Couldn’t crack the line-up. In his rookie year the interior backers were Kirkland and Holmes. The outside guys were Gildon and Lloyd (Lloyd’s last year). In the following two years Carlos Emmons replaced Lloyd and that was Vrabel’s best chance to crack the line-up but for whatever reason he never really got the chance. By 2000, Joey Porter had showed up and Gildon was in a stretch of Pro Bowl years.

In 2001 Vrabel was gone. Kirkland retired but he was replaced by Kendrell Bell who had a stellar rookie year.

Hard to argue Vrabel should have been kept by the Steelers. He was their fifth best linebacker during that entire time.

Great guy. Great career. Just too bad it had to happen with the Pats.

By: trollaikman8

trollaikman8 — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 09:45:04 +0000

His HoF hype would be more palatable if Bilichick hadn’t traded him for a half dozen doughnuts.

That and if he kept out of the clink in 2011.

By: Herb

Herb — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 03:50:24 +0000

One Pro Bowl made in a fourteen-year career: yep, that definitely warrants this kind of fellatious post.

By: billsfan1

billsfan1 — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 03:18:20 +0000

i feel like vrabel and bruschi epitomized NE…. guys who may not have done much on many other teams but were stars in NE

By: j0esixpack

j0esixpack — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 03:18:06 +0000

I’m just glad Rosenthal chose not to go full circle with the b**w jobs theme.

By: billsfan1

billsfan1 — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 03:16:45 +0000

my favorite ty law story was when he got busted heading into canada with a couple hits of X. of course he had a cousin take the fall but since i am a diehard michigan fan, i still rooted for him

By: bearsrulepackdrool

bearsrulepackdrool — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 01:58:54 +0000

Why does this article look like it was written by Perez Hilton? All these (lets call it “obscure”) references to the male genitalia made my other men?

By: ytsejamer1

ytsejamer1 — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 01:49:03 +0000

Cheers Gregg for a great article…otherwise known as smoke. He was always an underrated player in the league but always one of the rocks of our defense…when, well, they could play defense.

I loved watching Vrabel play each year for us…wish him the best.

By: jnbnet

jnbnet — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 01:19:17 +0000

There once was a Citizen named Strange

Whose opinion was always deranged

He is a chump

And dumb as a stump

And will gobble the goo for spare change

================================

Too funny!

By: thereisalwaysnextyear

thereisalwaysnextyear — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 00:08:53 +0000

The post best you’ve every written, without a doubt. Great read.

By: backindasaddle

backindasaddle — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 00:01:01 +0000

He may not go to the HOF, but was a one of the key cogs in the dynamic of those Patriot teams. Great guy too. I’ve always had great admiration for the Steelers….but the really screwed up by letting him get away. Congrats on a super playing career Mike and good luck in your new coaching one.

By: east96st

east96st — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:40:17 +0000

madenatewell says: “I wonder how hard this
idiot will fight for the retired players now that he is one…?”

Jeff Nixon, just let it go, man.

By: Deb

Deb — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:26:03 +0000

In “Under Siege,” Steven Seagal plays a Navy Seal turned cook who thwarts a gang of mercenaries. In one scene, a killer comments, “It’s a shame you weren’t cookin’ for us.” Seemed like every time we played the Pats, I was on the phone asking my brother, “Okay, tell me again why Vrabel’s not cookin’ for us?” I’m still not sure how or why the Steelers let him get away. But much as I hate the Pats, I always enjoyed watching Vrabel’s game. Smart, tough linebacker. Wish him all the best at OSU.

By: gimmeabruschi

gimmeabruschi — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:21:26 +0000

citizenstrange says: Jul 11, 2011 4:41 PM

An Ode to Mike Vrabel’s Career

There once was a linebacker name Mike Vrabel
Whose team earned a cheating label
To cheat was their plan
For as long as the can
Cause winning a Super Bowl without it they were unable

_______________________________

There once was a Citizen named Strange

Whose opinion was always deranged

He is a chump

And dumb as a stump

And will gobble the goo for spare change

By: mike32303

mike32303 — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:11:08 +0000

Ty Law should definitely be in the Hall of Fame for God’s sakes.. Maybe one of the best corners of all time.. Guy was a great player and picked off Peyton Manning 3 times in game. How many can say they’ve done that lol.. Im bias cuz he was my favorite but man was he good for us along with Vrabel and company

By: emperorzero

emperorzero — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:08:54 +0000

Maybe I’m missing the point to the post, but..what was it about b-w jobs?

By: madenatewell

madenatewell — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:08:28 +0000

I wonder how hard this idiot will fight for the retired players now that he is one…?

By: jnbnet

jnbnet — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:07:29 +0000

If Vrable does half as well coaching as he has playing linebacker, then Ohio State will have made the right choice. Any NFL team would have loved to have had him on their roster. He will be missed.

By: hobartbaker

hobartbaker — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:02:27 +0000

Growing up looking like he did, with a name like Vrabel, Mike quickly developed a sense of humor.

By: howiefeltersnatch

howiefeltersnatch — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 21:59:11 +0000

dirty player who took some cheap shots

By: zackd2

zackd2 — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 21:49:04 +0000

Funny how that story comes from Michael Holley’s book, dude’s been on his knees for Pats for a decade

By: geauxjay

geauxjay — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 21:23:44 +0000

I don’t see how Ohio State hiring a guy who’s been arrested in the last 6 months is going to help their image.

By: CKL

CKL — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 21:10:23 +0000

Billy that was funny…even as a Pats fan I can say that.

Tedy was just on NFL Live saying that Vrabel was one guy who would tell coaches they were wrong and offer suggestions. At one point they wanted to go into coaching together though I think that once Tedy had his stroke and returned their friendship was strained a bit.

As a Pats fan I am always a little surprised that other team fans have a better opinion of Vrabel than they do of Bruschi because to me Vrabel was more of a butthole to other team’s fans. He was our butthole though and we love him.

He is the son of two well respected educators in my area. Last I knew his mom and dad were both HS principals so I am not surprised that he wants to be a teacher of sorts too.

That story from Patriots Reign is one of my favorite Vrabel stories.

By: billybats

billybats — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 20:58:59 +0000

I have my own ode to Vrabel:

“There once was a player named Vrabel,
who stole beers from a casino deli’s table,
when the news of this broke,
the despicable bloke
said reports of a crime were a fable.”

By: citizenstrange

citizenstrange — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 20:41:52 +0000

An Ode to Mike Vrabel’s Career

There once was a linebacker name Mike Vrabel
Whose team earned a cheating label
To cheat was their plan
For as long as the can
Cause winning a Super Bowl without it they were unable

By: Burritto

Burritto — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 20:38:16 +0000

Ty Law has much more than just an argument for the HOF.

By: seanb20124

seanb20124 — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 20:33:38 +0000

He has as many arrests in 2011 as does PAC MAN jones

By: tylerdurden0

tylerdurden0 — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 20:33:23 +0000

Vrabel stuck out, even on a team greater than the sum of its parts. On this day, he deserves a little smoke blown up his ass.

_________

That’s not all that’s being blown in this article….

Maybe buy the guy dinner first next time.