NFL insider points at Mike Vrabel's "tarnished brand" for ex-Titans HC not landing coaching job in 2024

Mike Vrabel got tepid interest from the seven NFL teams looking for a new coach after the 2023 regular season. The New England Patriots, the team Vrabel represented for eight seasons, immediately promoted Jerod Mayo after parting ways with Bill Belichick.

The Tennessee Titans, who fired Vrabel after six seasons, hired former Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan as his successor. Vrabel reportedly interviewed with the Atlanta Falcons and the Carolina Panthers.

However, the Falcons and Panthers respectively hired Raheem Morris and Dave Canales. Despite modest success with the Titans, Vrabel won’t be on an NFL sideline for the 2024 season.

NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero explained the outcome on the Feb. 4 episode of The Rich Eisen Show:

“With Vrabel, there’s a lot to unpack there, too. He’s another guy who wants things to be structured a certain way. But I think even more so the Mike Vrabel brand got tarnished a little bit, quite frankly.

"I mean, they lost 18 of their last 24 games during his time in Tennessee. Everything that played out this year was very strange.”

Mike Vrabel’s coaching stint with the Titans started impressively, leading them to the AFC Championship Game in his second season. It started three consecutive postseason appearances for Tennessee after finishing 11-5 in 2020 and 12-5 in 2021.

Pelissero added:

“I think that also what you're really seeing here is teams are looking at some of the other teams that have had recent success here. And seeing you can do it in more of a positive reinforcement type of a culture.

"You know, DeMeco Ryans and Dan Campbell are two of the really good examples... I think that’s the predominant trend.”

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Will Mike Vrabel coach in the NFL again?

With the 2023 season ending after Super Bowl LVIII, eliminated teams will want to complete their coaching staff before the 2024 league year starts. Doing so would give their new hires more time to hit the ground running.

Therefore, Mike Vrabel is expected to take a back seat in 2024 and could be considered a candidate in 2025 if any coaching position appears. However, shaking off the unfortunate ending with his Tennessee stint is tough.

The Titans finished 6-11 in his final season as coach. Even in the playoffs, he didn’t win a game, losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2019 AFC title game. It might take time for this last impression to wear off before he returns to coaching.