On Thursday night, the Patriots became the first team in the NFL to win nine games this season, beating the Jets (2-8) 27-14 to advance to 9-2 on the year.
Come Monday morning, only the Broncos (9-2) sit ahead of New England in the AFC standings, as they hold the tie breaker with the best conference win percentage (6-2 vs. 5-2).
Vibes are high at 1 Patriot Place, but head coach Mike Vrabel made it clear on Monday’s Greg Hill Show that they’re not taking their foot off the gas.
“This league is - it's so just finicky, you know?” said Vrabel while answering a question about yet another round of loud ‘M-V-P!’ chants for Drake Maye on Thursday. “I mean, you have to continue to do it each and every day, and on gameday it's certainly the most important.
“So, no naps. That's what we're going to start talking about. No naps. We don't want to take any naps and have any days off.”
What does Vrabel mean by “no naps” for a team that’s won eight-straight games since Week 4? Wouldn’t a 9-2 record and first place in the AFC East constitute a team that’s already playing high-level football from start to finish on a weekly basis?
In totality, yes.
But when you take a fine-tooth comb to their games, you can find stretches where things got a little dicey, even in some of their most convincing wins.
Take Thursday night, for example.
You look at that score, and you say, ‘Nice, another two-score victory.’
But when you hear Vrabel talk about the game on Monday, he’s able to point to a specific stretch where napping may have been occurring.
“You say no napping, but I'm watching the game at home, and I'm saying to my TV at points, it looks like you guys are sleepwalking,” said WEEI’s Jermaine Wiggins, who was teammates with Vrabel in New England during the 2001 season. “There was a point in time where I saw you telling them, ‘Pick it up.’ Did you feel at times from that game that maybe you took your foot off the gas a little bit?”
“Well I mean, we missed a kick before half, went three and out to start the second half,” said Vrabel. “So again, this is not always just going to be an 80-yard drive, or it's not always going to be a three and out on defense. It's still professional football.
“And, yeah - I don't think we're sleepwalking. I just think that there's a play here or play there, or one guy or a mistake. And, you know - we just have to try to clean those things up and continue to improve. That's the most important thing.”
Vrabel will look to keep that coffee cranking in Week 12, as they’ll head to Cincinnati to take on the Bengals (3-7). As of publishing, the Patriots are 6.5-point road favorites, and sit on the moneyline at -300.
And with video surfacing from the Bengals’ game with the Steelers (6-4) on Sunday showing All-World wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase spitting on former All-Pro defensive back Jalen Ramsey, there is a chance the 25-year-old is suspended for Week 12 all together.
If that’s the case, those betting odds may tilt in New England’s favor even further.
Chase or not…no napping, New England!
Tune in each and every Monday throughout the football season to Patriots Monday on WEEI. Head coach Mike Vrabel joins The Greg Hill Show at 6:30 a.m. ET, and quarterback Drake Maye joins WEEI Afternoons.