Titans now have their shot to humble Mike Vrabel once and for all

The NFL released the complete 2025 season schedule on Wednesday evening. The Tennessee Titans will begin their campaign by traveling to Denver for a road date with the Broncos in Week 1. Another matchup on the Titans' schedule that qualifies as particularly intriguing is the Week 7 revenge-game opportunity versus former head coach Mike Vrabel and his New England Patriots.

Titans to host Mike Vrabel, New England Patriots in Week 7

The Titans appointed Vrabel as their head coach in 2018 and quickly embarked on one of the organization's most successful stints in team history. Vrabel led Tennessee to four straight winning seasons, including an AFC Championship Game and back-to-back division titles.

Vrabel and the Titans failed to sustain that success in 2022 and 2023 with an aging roster and little in-house solutions. He was fired after enduring consecutive losing seasons amid rumors of a power struggle with owner Amy Adams Strunk and then-GM Ran Carthon.

The Titans hired Brian Callahan to replace Vrabel as head coach. Callahan took the Titans backwards in 2024, leading the team to an NFL-worst 3-14 record, landing the No. 1 overall pick, which was used on quarterback Cam Ward. Vrabel meanwhile spent the season in a consultant role with the Cleveland Browns before being appointed as head coach earlier this offseason by the Patriots, the franchise he won three Super Bowls with as a player.

Vrabel positioned for more say in player personnel after the Titans mismanaged several offseasons in a row. Instead, the Titans fired him and moved forward with a Carthon-Callahan partnership. That lasted just one disastrous season, with Mike Borgonzi now replacing Carthon as GM.

Meanwhile Vrabel, who was often criticized for favoring assistant coaches and players, has continued to do things his way in New England. Per an approximate count, Vrabel is employing more than 10 people in a front-office and/or coaching staff role that worked under him in Tennessee. The Patriots also acquired five-plus players this offseason who previously played for the Titans.

Old habits die hard.

The Titans' pending matchup with Vrabel in Week 7 is sandwiched between a road date with the Las Vegas Raiders (Week 6) and a trip to Indianapolis for a divisional showdown with the Colts OL.