Vrabel sees no need to fi x what isn’t broken
Mike Vrabel isn’t making any drastic changes in his first season as the Houston Texans’ defensive coordinator.
After what the unit did last year he knows that isn’t necessary. The defense was the strength of the team in 2016 and finished the season allowing the fewest yards per game in the league despite defensive end J.J. Watt missing all but three games because of back surgery.
“I’m not really trying to put my stamp on our defense,” said Vrabel, a former Ohio State player and assistant coach. “I’m just trying to coordinate a group of professional athletes that were successful last year as a group … our guys play hard and I appreciate that. So, I don’t know if that’s my stamp or that’s their stamp, but we try to have a culture that is built around competitiveness and winning.”
Vrabel spent three seasons as Houston’s linebackers coach before he was promoted to coordinator when Romeo Crennel became the assistant head coach. As the Texans prepare for an exhibition game Saturday against the New England Patriots, coach Bill O’Brien has already been impressed with the work Vrabel has done in his new role.
“They’re doing a good job over there mixing it up. We’re mixing it up,” O’Brien said. “I think he’s doing a good job. He’s very organized, detailed, works very hard. He’s got a great way with the players, so I think so far, so good.”
Before becoming a coach, Vrabel spent 14 seasons as a linebacker for Pittsburgh, New England and Kansas City, where he piled up 511 tackles and 57 sacks. His extensive playing experience is a big reason why the players have taken to him so well as a coach.
“He brings (enthusiasm) every day and we just kind of feed off of his energy,” cornerback Kareem Jackson said. “He’s been in the situations that we’ve been in and some big-time ballgames. So we’re definitely going to follow him. He’s going to be our leader, and he’s a great leader for us.”
Cleveland wants to host NFL draft
The Cleveland Browns aren’t anywhere close to being Super Bowl-ready, but they believe they’re prepared to host the NFL draft in 2019 or 2020.
The team announced it has partnered with the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton and Greater Cleveland Sports Commission to potentially host the three-day draft. The group delivered its application to league headquarters in New York last week.
“The draft is amazing exposure because it goes everywhere and people see it,” team owner Dee Haslam said, “and so we’re real excited about that opportunity to get people to come to northeast Ohio and see what a fantastic place it is.”
Wrapping up
The New England Patriots said former nose tackle Lester Williams, who started in the franchise’s first Super Bowl appearance during the 1985 season, died Wednesday in Birmingham, Alabama. He was 58. … Oakland Raiders cornerback Sean Smith has been charged with beating his sister’s boyfriend last month. Smith, 30, is scheduled to be arraigned next month on assault and battery charges in Los Angeles.