Ahead of what proved to be a quiet NFL trade deadline for the Patriots, it was reported that the Titans might be reluctant to deal players to New England because of team owner Amy Adams Strunk’s lingering ill will toward Mike Vrabel.
Vrabel, who was fired by Tennessee two years ago, was asked Monday for his response to that rumor.
“I haven’t talked to Amy since the day she fired me,” the Patriots head coach said on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show. “So her name and my name should not be in the same sentence together, because I haven’t talked to her since the day she fired me.”
The Patriots did not make any moves before last Tuesday’s deadline, though sources told the Herald’s Andrew Callahan that they explored trades for edge rushers and running backs.
Vrabel said the team still could add to its roster in the coming weeks to account for its current spate of injuries. The Patriots played without three starters (running back Rhamondre Stevenson, wide receiver Kayshon Boutte and linebacker Christian Elliss) in Sunday’s 28-23 win over the Buccaneers. They also lost backup running back Terrell Jennings to a knee injury before halftime.
Several other Patriots players, including defensive tackle Christian Barmore, running back TreVeyon Henderson and slot cornerback/punt returner Marcus Jones, were evaluated by team trainers during Sunday’s game before later returning.
“Everybody in the personnel department worked and tried to be diligent (before the trade deadline), but we didn’t feel like just adding players to add players,” Vrabel said on WEEI. “There was conversations about different things, and those things didn’t work out, and (we) just decided that it wasn’t the right thing for us. That’s kind of where it was. So moving forward here, we’ll have to find ways to — especially this week on a short week — figure out who we have, who’s available and where we can try to add some players or use some players from the practice squad.”
The 8-2 Patriots will host the 2-7 Jets on Thursday night at Gillette Stadium.