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mike vrabel

Choosing from Patriots Hall of Fame Finalists

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The Patriots announced the three finalists to be inducted into the team Hall of Fame this summer, putting us all in a bind over trying to choose amongst our favorite players from the original days of the dynasty. This year Matt Light, Mike Vrabel and Richard Seymour are those whom we have to choose from, no easy decision by any means.

All three burst onto the scene in 2001, with Light and Seymour stepping in immediately as impact rookies and Vrabel being one of the first of many veteran castoffs who found success under Bill Belichick in New England.

Let’s take a quick look at all three and then decide who gets the PatsPropaganda vote this year.

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Patriots 2016 Hall of Fame Finalists announced

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A 20-person nomination committee selects Raymond Clayborn, Kevin Faulk and Mike Vrabel as the 2016 Patriots Hall of Fame finalists. Patriots fans now have until May 14 to vote for the nominee most deserving of hall of fame honors.

Source: Patriots 2016 Hall of Fame Finalists announced | New England Patriots

Tough, tough choice here. Raymond Clayborn’s number’s don’t lie but most of us are guilty of recency bias and seeing two legends like Kevin Faulk and Mike Vrabel up there really pulls the attention away. Clayborn’s been nominated for his third-straight time, so it’s kind of now or never for him. He should probably be the guy right now, but is likely to once again be overshadowed by guys who helped the Pats win multiple Super Bowls.

But if we ignore Clayborn for a moment, as most new-ish Patriots fans are doing, how do you choose between Faulk and Vrabel? Both had so many huge plays in huge games that easily and immediately come to mind. Can you really say which was more valuable to the dynasty? I’d argue for Faulk that his value really spiked later in his career, like 2006-2009, though he broke 1000 yards from scrimmage in 2000 and 2003. 2008 he was vital to helping Matt Cassel with the third-most yards-from-scrimmage of his career.

As for Vrabel, I can’t lie. He’s one of my all-time favorite Pats and as we all know now, maybe the smartest player to ever play for Belichick. And the way he came to the team, as a Steeler castoff, only makes him really embody a huge part of what has made the Belichick Pats so good. The clutch Super Bowl touchdowns, the big sacks, playing any position on defense just about, Vrabel did it all and did it all at a high level.

In some ways I feel like Vrabel and Faulk are the flip side of the same coin. Somewhat unsung and under-appreciated but unquestionably the kind of players that the dominance of the 2000s was built on. While I think Vrabel probably wins the vote and gets into the HOF, Faulk shouldn’t have to wait long.

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I always knew Mike was going to be a coach just because of the way he carried himself on the field. Being able to play with him and see him now as a coach, he’s the same guy. I tell guys all the time, if Vrabel gets in shape right now he probably could still play football. That’s the one guy out of all the guys I played with I think hands down he was the best all-around teammate that I ever had: Mike Vrabel. And that says a lot because I played with some great, great guys. A lot of guys are my friends. But all around from offense, defense, special teams, player, coach on the field – you name it, a friend, a mentor, everything you can name, that was Mike Vrabel. He’s still like that to this day.

Vince Wilfork on Mike Vrabel

Vince Wilfork: ‘I’m happy to be here surrounded by barbecue’ – Houston Texans Blog – ESPN

https://www.patspropaganda.com/i-always-knew-mike-was-going-to-be-a-coach-just/