FOXBOROUGH - Right out of gate at his Wednesday media availability, Mike Vrabel was asked about the team’s inactivity before the trade deadline and how close the Patriots came to making any deals.
He jumped in with an unusual comparison.
“Deals are like being pregnant. You either are, or you aren’t. It’s either a deal or it’s not? So I don’t know how close you can be.”
Sitting at 7-2 in first place in the division, with a wide open AFC, there was some belief the Patriots would be aggressive in showing up deficient areas.
Vrabel said it wasn’t for lack of effort.
“I know that everyone worked hard and that we investigated and looked in and made phone calls,” he said. “We did what personnel departments do. And in the end, we decided this is what we were going to do. We decided to move forward with our preparation for Tampa ... that’s where our focus is. I know there’s a lot of action and a lot of talk. But that’s where we’re at.”
Asked about adhering to a plan, and not jumping at the opportunity in front of them, Vrabel said he never looked at it that way.
“We’re trying to build a program ... I think part of building a program is finding ways to win, building a team and figuring out where the pieces are that we can continue to add that are going to make sense.
“I don’t think is a negative. This is just where we’re at. We worked extremely hard to make calls and have conversation. In the end, we didn’t do anything.”
Asked if the AFC landscape and it being wide open factored into the decision to stand pat, Vrabel implied he didn’t have a crystal ball.
“For us to sit there and think that anything is wide open and talk about the playoffs, we’re focusing on our 10th game in a row. That’s where our focus is,” Vrabel said. “It’s not trying to predict the future and saying it’s wide open. We’re going to just keep focusing on what’s in front of us.”
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