After being fired by the Tennessee Titans, many believed former head coach Mike Vrabel would land a job quickly, but that turned out not to be the case and instead Vrabel is without a head-coaching gig for 2024.
It isn’t exactly clear why no teams hired Vrabel, who did receive a few head coach interviews with teams.
After he didn’t get one, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini gave a few possible reasons, one of which came from an unnamed general manager who she spoke with at the Senior Bowl.
Russini first said that she didn’t think “there was a fit” for Vrabel, but she also added that the aforementioned GM speculated that Vrabel’s size and intimidating demeanor might have played a role.
“I don’t think there was a fit for him,” Russini said in February. “I don’t think he sat in front of any owner who thought that his style was going to work for what they were looking for… I had a GM at the Senior Bowl who mentioned to me Vrabel’s physical build. That he’s a very large human being and can be very intimidating to people in an organization that are going to be part of these decisions. And that is a factor.”
That report did not sit well with Vrabel, apparently.
During a recent interview on “Pardon My Take”, Russini was asked if she had ever done a story that got her in hot water with a player or coach and Russini cited the Vrabel story as an example.
“He didn’t call me after the piece we did on why he got fired, but the piece on him calling him a little fat, he wasn’t too happy,” Russini said.
You can check out Russini’s comments on the Vrabel situation in their entirety below (H/T James Foster, No Flags Film).
— James Foster (@NoFlagsFilm) March 7, 2024
It has long been known that Russini had an in with the Titans through Vrabel, but it’s possible that silly story won’t do her any favors in terms of getting scoops from the former head coach when he gets his next job.
