Vrabel was referring to a pair of Patriots starters currently on injured reserve, left tackle Will Campbell and defensive lineman Milton Williams. The former suffered a reported MCL sprain in Week 12 against the Cincinnati Bengals, with the latter hurting his ankle the previous game against the New York Jets.

That’s how Mike Vrabel has described Sunday’s showdown with the Bills, a perfectly timed visit as the Patriots try to end Buffalo’s five-year reign as AFC East champions. If the Pats win, they clinch the division. It’s that simple.

Any of these seven candidates could be considered worthy of the award, but the Patriots' and 49ers' coaches have the strongest case.

If you traveled through the New England Patriots media landscape this week, chances are you came across this at some point: Mike Vrabel went a perfect 6-0 coming off a bye week during his time as head coach of the Tennessee Titans, and will have a chance to improve to 7-0 this Sunday against the Buffalo Bills.

One of the biggest stories in the NFL this week is the return of 44-year-old quarterback Philip Rivers to the Indianapolis Colts. While some players in the NFL today have never faced Rivers, Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel competed against Phillips for several years.

FOXBOROUGH — Patriots coach Mike Vrabel opened his Wednesday press conference with a note of support for the family of Patriots Hall of Famer Kevin Faulk.

Mike Vrabel 'heartbroken' for former teammate Kevin Faulk and his wife Latisha, who are dealing with the loss of a second daughter.

Patriots coach Mike Vrabel commented briefly on injured offensive tackle Will Campbell's injury and recovery status.

Patriots coach Mike Vrabel is hard on his players, but after every game, win or lose, he greets them alone in the tunnel and thanks them.