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SAN FRANCISCO – The Tennessee Titans were a perennial playoff contender with Mike Vrabel manning the sidelines, but they wanted more. So, they axed him after the 2023 season.
However, that decision proved costly, as the Titans have not been close to the playoffs, and Vrabel is now in the Super Bowl with the New England Patriots.
Perhaps it is destiny for Vrabel and the Pats, as Vrabel was an All-Pro linebacker in New England. But for Titans fans, it's obviously fair to wonder, "What if?"
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New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel celebrates after the AFC championship game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field At Mile High on Jan. 25, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
Surely, that's what former Titans Pro Bowl tight end Delanie Walker is thinking.
"We are kicking ourselves. The whole state of Tennessee is kicking itself to see what Mike Vrabel has done in being able to play in a Super Bowl," Walker said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital. "He did it here, so we knew what kind of caliber coach he was."
Walker's final two NFL seasons were Vrabel's first as a head coach. Vrabel was Walker's fourth coach while he was in Tennessee, but something about him was different from Mike Mularkey, Ken Whisenhunt, and Mike Munchak.
"This is a big thing, honestly. A lot of coaches have this issue, and that’s being honest with players. Some coaches, they will tell you one thing and do another, they lie to you in your face and go upstairs and say ‘can we cut him?’ Mike Vrabel doesn’t lie. He played, so he gets it," Walker said.
"Every coach who’s played this game, look how successful they are in the NFL. They understand it, they knew how they felt when they played, so they don’t want to treat a player like that. That’s how Vrabel was. Vrabel was honest, never lied to us, just told us how it was to our face. Yeah, sometimes, it’s hard to swallow, but most players like honesty, so we’ll go out and sell out for you, because we know you got our back."
Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel pats tight end Delanie Walker on the head during the second quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019, in Atlanta, Georgia. (George Walker IV/Tennessean.com, Nashville Tennessean via Imagn Content Services, LLC)
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During Super Bowl week, Walker's former teammate Taylor Lewan echoed similar sentiments on radio row.
"He's in the Super Bowl. Yes, the Titans made a massive mistake letting Mike Vrabel go a couple years ago," Lewan said. "You see the reflection of what their record was when Mike Rabel wasn't there versus when he was there. And I'm sure there's a lot of Titans fans that wish he was still on the team."
Walker even joked that Vrabel's time with Tennessee was "the Patriots Way of the South."
"That’s literally what it was. He literally brought the Patriots Way. We all used to say that," Walker said with a laugh. "Can’t talk to the media without talking to the coach, can’t disclose injuries. I don’t have a problem with it. Sometimes you need that structure to hold guys accountable, and that’s why we were successful when he came."
Lewan mentioned that culture Vrabel brought as well, labeling Vrabel as a "lovable a--hole."
"I thought he was an a--hole in 2018. A lovable a--hole, but he is an a--hole. He was definitely very, very difficult on us in his first year in 2018. And then as his culture was implemented, and he felt the leadership on the team take over, his culture, that's what he led you to have a little bit more reign. So, yeah, I think as far as preparation goes, getting guys to understand the game, game management, all of those things, you're probably not going to find another team in the NFL that is more prepared in those small minute details."
Despite Vrabel finding success in New England, though, Walker has high hopes for the new-look Titans with Cam Ward, new head coach Robert Saleh, and new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll.
"I do believe the Titans are getting back to where they used to be. This is the NFL, you have your ups and downs. Hopefully, we bring in the right people to make our team good again. And at the end of the day, you have very young talent that showed out," he said. "That’s something you want to feed off of next year and help those guys bring that energy to make the other rookies."
Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward throws during the second half an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
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"Cam is a beast, man," Walker added. "Some of the plays he made this year was incredible. To go out there and fight even though we were in a slump, team wasn’t doing well. I knew he wouldn’t get the credit he deserved, because Tennessee is a small market, we were already losing when he got there, it just doesn’t work. We had that spotlight on him for the first few games, then when they started losing, no one wanted to watch the Titans anymore. There he goes. You’ve never seen a first overall pick not get as much a spotlight, and it was just because he was on the Titans."
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