New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was able to catch up with an old friend in Nashville this week.
Brady and the Patriots are in Tennessee this week for two joint practices (Wednesday and Thursday) with the Titans before playing them in their second preseason game Saturday night.
The Titans are coached by former Patriots linebacker Mike Vrabel, who spent eight seasons as Brady's teammate in New England. Brady and Vrabel had plenty of fun this week -- exchanging friendly trash talk and Brady trolling his old teammate with a special trophy.
The 42-year-old quarterback wishes Vrabel well despite these teams both seeking AFC supremacy.
"He's been a good friend for a long time," Brady told reporters after Thursday's practice. "He's done a great job leading this team. I'm proud of him and everything he's accomplished. We all support him, even though he's coaching for another team. It was really good work. Good work between these two teams. They took care of us pretty good last year. We knew it was going to be competitive, so it's been a good couple of days."
Brady won three Super Bowl titles with Vrabel early in the veteran quarterback's career. Vrabel even caught a touchdown pass from Brady in both Super Bowl XXXVIII and Super Bowl XXXIX. It's quite clear that Brady holds Vrabel's playing career in very high regard.
New England Patriots
"He's extremely competitive. Really a hard-nosed, tough player. Competed at everything," Brady told reporters. "When he played offense he was an incredible player for us. Obviously, when he played defense -- one of the best Patriots to ever play. He dropped into coverage. He rushed, covered. I think he's built a team that's very similar. Very hard hitting, hard working, just a good hard-nosed team. They got a really good team."
The Titans went 9-7 and missed the playoffs last season -- Vrabel's first as the team's head coach. Tennessee's defense was excellent, however, ranking third in points allowed and allowing the sixth fewest passing yards per game. If Vrabel can find ways to improve the team's offense -- which scored less than 20 points per game in 2018 -- the Titans should be able to compete for a playoff spot this season.
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