The Tennessee Titans rookie head coach has had a strong start.
Heading into Week 17 with everything on the line, Tennessee Titans fans need to appreciate what Mike Vrabel has done so far in his head coaching career.
There are going to be a lot of people who tell you that he walked into a perfect situation with a team that had already made the playoffs the year before. However, a deeper look shows you that he has rarely had anything resembling that team in 2018.
I jotted down the injuries (or one player that quit) that Vrabel has had to deal with and it is a long list:
-Delanie Walker (missed at least part of 16 games)
-Rishard Matthews (13 games)
-Jack Conklin (8 games)
-Marcus Mariota (5 games)
-Kenny Vaccaro (4 games)
-Jonnu Smith (4 games)
-Derrick Morgan (4 games)
-Taywan Taylor (4 games)
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-Taylor Lewan (3 games)
-Logan Ryan (3 games)
-Wesley Woodyard (3 games)
-Rashaan Evans (2 games)
-Brian Orakpo (2 games)
-Quinton Spain (2 games)
-Sharif Finch (2 games)
-Harold Landry (1 game)
That is a list that includes several former and current All Pros and Pro Bowlers missing multiple games. While every team deals with injuries, the Titans certainly feel like they have had more than their fair share this year.
So, how did that affect Mike Vrabel? Not only did he help pilot the Titans to a winning season, but he was one of the better rookie coaches in the league. Look at where he lands among first year HCs this year:
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-Matt Nagy (Chicago Bears) 11 wins
-Mike Vrabel (Tennessee Titans) 9 wins
-Frank Reich (Indianapolis Colts) 9 wins
-Pat Shurmur (New York Giants) 5 wins
-Matt Patricia (Detroit Lions) 5 wins
-Jon Gruden (Oakland Raiders) 4 wins (not technically a 1st year HC, but it has been a decade since he coached)
-Steve Wilks (Arizona Cardinals) 3 wins
So right now Vrabel is tied for the second best start of any rookie head coach this year despite the onslaught of injuries.
I think that is a pretty outstanding job and with the resources this team has, there is a good chance that they can get much better quickly with a full offseason with the same coaching staff for the first time in a while.
The Titans are young at all the right positions and they have a coach who seems to get it at the helm. With a big game looming, we should reflect and realize that a win would be amazing and do wonders for his reputation, Mike Vrabel has already done enough to give fans a sense of optimism for the future.