RapSheet Bomb: The Titans Owner Fired Mike Vrabel for How He Handled His Induction Into the Patriots HoF

Lachlan Cunningham. Getty Images.

If you've been looking for some clarity on why Titans owner Adam Adams Strunk ordered a Code Red on one of the most respected head coaches her franchise has ever had, you won't get it from her. Aside from saying virtually nothing in this safe, highly edited interview with the Titans' play-by-play guy (WARNING: This thing is duller than C-SPAN, so don't play it while operating heavy machinery. Better still, don't play it at all):

Advertisement

Fortunately, we've got Ian Rapoport to bring the situation into focus. And to confirm that while there were a few factors, the underlying reason was one of the oldest motivations in the history of the human race: 

Hurt feelings. Specifically, the hurt feelings that happens when you see your significant other hanging around with their ex. Whom they obviously still have good feelings toward:

"This was Amy Adams Strunk making the decision based on a LOT of things. Including what happened when he went to New England for the Hall of Fame thing, and not dispelling rumors in house that he was going to be the Patriots coach."

Well, well, well. If we didn't just see a major decision with profound impact on a multi-billion dollar operation being made over not what would be in the best interest of the Titans, but out of petty jealousy. Green is not a good color on you, Amy Adams Strunk. 

Business decisions should never be made on the basis of emotion. But even acknowledging that, you can see the human side of this, too. Even a Patriots fan who doesn't care a Tuppenny damn about what happens in Tennessee had to admit I raised an eyebrow when Vrabel spoke at his Patriots Hall induction ceremony in October during the Titans bye week. 

From the way he bared his soul and demonstrated the love and affection he still carries in his heart for the Dynasty he helped create:

… to his use of the first person plural pronoun:

Advertisement

But I never gave it much more thought than saying it's a bit unusual. Something you don't hear every day when a guy is employed by a competitor. But ultimately a Quarter Pounder Nothingburger. Just a guy speaking from his heart about a lot of cherished memories. 

In Tennessee, they saw it different. At least the impossibly wealthy person who cuts all the payroll checks did. And she wasn't able to separate the raw emotion of the moment from the cold, analytical calculus of how to do what's best for your organization. 

The ultimate irony of this is that if Vrabel ends up with any sort of a role on the Patriots, then it's the team's fans who made it happen. The Hall voting is all done online. Like I wrote when the nominees were announced, 2023 was a particularly strong class. And while I had Vrabel as my odds-on favorite, they were all deserving candidates. And he had been on the ballot six times before with no luck. If it should play out that the fanbase elected him, his comments at the induction shook Titans ownership to the point he got fired, only to end up coaching in Foxboro, it'll be to the eternal credit of all of us. 

I'm still firmly on Team Belichick. Bill Now, Bill Forever. But if this is how it all goes down, it might be worth it just to watch the rest of the league freak the fuck out over this series of events. It's been too long since we've gotten to incite a national panic around here, and I miss it.