Mike Vrabel Points Out Flaw In Patriots Offense He Is Trying To Fix

Mike Vrabel Points Out Flaw In Patriots Offense He Is Trying To Fix originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The New England Patriots made the Super Bowl last season, but there are still areas the team has room to improve in. One of those areas is the rushing attack.

The Patriots were sixth in rushing yards in the regular season and 13th in yards per attempt. The run game was not bad, but Mike Vrabel noted at the NFL’s Annual Meeting that he felt it could be more consistent.

“We want to be more consistent running the football,” Vrabel said, per MassLive's Karen Guregian. “This isn’t like we’re going to run it every single play. It’s just that I felt like there were too many times where we wanted to run it, and it was just inefficient. Now we popped some, which was great. We had some explosives. … But I want to be able to do it more consistently to allow for some of the run actions in the passing game to really come alive.

“It’s a tough league if you have to sit there and drop back and throw the football as much as we did in the last game of the season.”

The Patriots' inability to run the football consistently was evident in the playoffs. In the Super Bowl, the Patriots had 79 rushing yards. The Patriots had to drop back and pass often, and the score of the game played a role in that, but it led to plenty of sacks. The Patriots drafted TreVeyon Henderson last year, and he had a solid rookie season.

However, Henderson was more of a home run threat than a consistent force. He had 911 rushing yards on the season, but 241 of those yards came on four runs. Those are the type of plays that inflate the Patriots' averages. Vrabel knows the team cannot be as reliant on explosive run plays.

How are the Patriots addressing the issue? Well, the team signed blocking fullback Reggie Gilliam and blocking tight end Julian Hill. They also added Alijah Vera-Tucker at guard and moved Jared Wilson to center. The team is improving its blocking and offensive line in hopes of creating better running lanes.

Reports over the weekend claimed that the Italy national team players attempted to negotiate a bonus before their World Cup play-off final defeat against Bosnia and Herzegovina, but the latest updates indicate that the Azzurri squad members would have received individual ‘gifts’ had they managed to qualify.

Report: Italy squad would have received World Cup qualification bonus ‘gifts’

According to recent reports from La Repubblica, Italian players sought a collective bonus of €300,000, which equates to just over €10,000 per player, in the event of qualification for the 2026 World Cup.

The dreams of qualifying for the 2026 tournament in North America came crashing down after a penalty shoot-out defeat away against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the play-off final on Tuesday evening.

The Repubblica report claimed that Gattuso attempted to dissuade his players from negotiating over a potential bonus fee before the World Cup play-off final was played.

However, according to Sunday’s updates from La Gazzetta dello Sport, the FIGC would have been prepared to offer Italy national team players bonus ‘gifts’ had they qualified for the World Cup.

ZENICA, BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA – MARCH 31: Moise Kean of Italy celebrates with his teammates after scoring his team’s opening goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 European Qualifiers KO play-offs match between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Italy at Stadion Bilino Polje on March 31, 2026 in Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina. (Photo by Getty Images/Getty Images)

The Pink Paper points out that the Italy squad do not receive fees for representing the national team squad, but regardless, a financial bonus of around €10,000 would not have made much difference economically speaking to a group of highly-paid top level footballers.

So, instead of a cash bonus, the FIGC were reportedly preparing a more sentimental bonus ‘gift’ for the players. La Gazzetta dello Sport suggested that the players might have been given individual watches instead, or something along those lines.

La Gazzetta dello Sport adds that there were discussions among the players after the Northern Ireland match on the topic of a potential bonus, but that there were no formal requests from players for a specific cash prize.

As the clock ticked 90 at the London Stadium, Leeds fans were in party mode and West Ham fans were streaming out.

However, everything has changed in injury time with the Irons pulling back from 2-0 down to force extra-time in a thrilling FA Cup quarter final.

Ao Tanaka had given Leeds a first-half lead before Dominic Calvert Lewin seemingly booked their spot in a first semi-final since 1987.

But with three of the 11 minutes of injury time gone, Mateus Fernandes bundled the ball into the net from close range after Jarrod Bowen cracked the post with a stunning strike.

Just three minutes later, Axel Disasi got his foot on a fine Adama Traoré cross to fire past Lucas Perri and spark wild celebrations from everyone bar the sizeable away end.

Here's the goal for UK and Irish users.

There was a check for a high foot but the goal stood, confirming a miraculous recovery from the Irons.

Nuno's side have now been in extra-time of each of their four FA Cup games this season.

Can they keep up their winning streak or will Leeds fight back?

The added 30 has seen Perri drop an absolute clanger only for Valentín Castellanos to be offside prior to putting the ball in the net.

What a game! What a competition!

NFL exec didn't mind Seahawks letting Kenneth Walker leave for Chiefs for two reasons originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Seattle Seahawks were faced with a litany of very difficult decisions this offseason when it came to free agency. Though they had a plan, they still lost a lot of key players.

Coby Bryant went to the Chicago Bears, Tariq Woolen to the Philadelphia Eagles, Boye Mafe to the Cincinnati Bengals, and most notably, Kenneth Walker III to the Kansas City Chiefs.

While losing Walker, their Super Bowl 60 MVP, stings, one NFL executive, according to Mike Sando of The Athletic, actually didn't mind the decision for two main reasons.

NFL exec didn't mind Seahawks letting Kenneth Walker leave

"I don't mind them letting the back go for that price," one NFL executive said. "They will draft one."

The two reasons why this NFL executive didn't mind this decision from Seattle are clear: Walker's price tag and how the Seahawks can address the position now that he's gone.

Walker cost the Chiefs over $40 million over just three seasons, with the deal reaching upwards of $45 million, or $15 million per-year.

That's a lot of money for a running back, especially for the Seahawks, who have massive deals with Jaxon Smith-Njigba and soon Devon Witherspoon on the horizon.

More: Mike Washington Jr. is Seahawks ideal R2 draft pick

The other reason why Walker's leaving isn't a move that this NFL executive minded is that the Seahawks can land a running back in the NFL Draft.

While they can't get Jermiyah Love, one of Jadarian Price, Mike Washington Jr., or a few other running backs would be a decent Day 2 or 3 option for Seattle.

There isn't a clear replacement for Walker, but between the price tag for the Super Bowl MVP and the possibility for a rookie in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Seahawks decision to let Walker leave in free agency is one that this NFL executive didn't mind.

More Seahawks news:

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• Seahawks extend Jaxon Smith-Njigba to record-setting $168.6 million deal
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