The Patriots found themselves backed into a corner on Sunday night, trailing 24-13 in the fourth quarter after a gutsy fake punt attempt went sideways. It was a high-risk call from head coach Mike Vrabel - one that didn’t pay off in the moment - but it ultimately didn’t stop New England from storming back to pull off a 28-24 win over the Ravens.
The play in question came on a fourth-and-10, deep in Patriots territory. Instead of punting it away, Vrabel dialed up a fake - a direct snap to linebacker Marte Mapu, who was tasked with finding tight end Jack Westover downfield.
But the Ravens weren’t fooled. Mapu hesitated, tried to make something happen, and ended up fumbling the ball.
Baltimore pounced on the opportunity and punched in a quick touchdown to extend their lead to 11.
After the game, Vrabel didn’t shy away from taking responsibility.
“It’s something we had practiced, something I felt confident in,” Vrabel said. “I wouldn’t have called it if we didn’t feel confident in it. Unfortunately, it didn’t work - so it was a bad call by me.”
Vrabel explained that the design was never for Mapu to run. The idea was to give Westover a shot if the coverage dropped off, which it did. But in the chaos of live action, Mapu didn’t like what he saw and tried to improvise - a decision that ended in disaster.
“I just told Te to throw it, give Jack a chance,” Vrabel said. “He just felt like it wasn’t there and made a decision.
I made a decision to try the play. I’ll make other calls - some will be good, some will be bad.”
What could’ve been a game-defining mistake instead became a footnote, thanks to the resilience of the Patriots’ roster. After that miscue and the Ravens’ ensuing touchdown, New England locked in. The defense clamped down, and the offense answered with 15 unanswered points to close out the game.
That kind of response says a lot about the team’s mentality. Vrabel may regret the call, but he made it clear he’s proud of how his players responded.
“Credit to the guys - they kept playing and found a way to win the game,” he said.
In the NFL, coaches live and die by their decisions. Sometimes the bold calls spark momentum.
Other times, they blow up in your face. What matters most is how a team responds.
On Sunday night, the Patriots didn’t blink. They rallied behind their coach, overcame a critical mistake, and walked off with a statement win.