Eliot Wolf reiterates who has final say on Patriots personnel
Two of the most important words in New England are back at the forefront: “final say.”
Eliot Wolf uttered the iconic phrase once again on Wednesday, during a press conference at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Wolf had previously alluded to his work with new Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel, who spoke on Tuesday at the combine about his “impact on the roster” and comfort in where he stands on that in the organization.
If you ask Wolf, he still has the last word on whomever the Patriots acquire.
“Ultimately it’s my final say,” Wolf said. “But again, Mike [Vrabel] said it yesterday, Mike wouldn’t have taken this job – and this is something we talked about in the interview process – Mike wouldn’t have taken this job if we weren’t comfortable with each other. There’s not going to be ‘Mike’s guys’ or ‘Eliot’s guys,’ they’re gonna be Patriot guys, and we’re excited to share the vision to work together to improve the roster.”
It certainly sounds like Wolf and Vrabel are happy to collaborate on the roster-building process, along with Vice President of Player Personnel Ryan Cowden, whom Wolf said he has known for 20 years. Despite declaring himself as the one holding the dreaded final say, Wolf acknowledged that he won’t “force” any players on Vrabel.
“There’s not a lot of GMs or people in my position in this business that are going to force players on a coaching staff,” Wolf said. “Certainly, the best decisions are made together. I’m going to continue to work with Mike and Ryan and ‘Stretch’ [Vice President of Football Operations and Strategy John Streicher] and the scouting staff, [Director of Research] Richard Miller, everybody, to make those decisions the best we can for the team.”
We are talking about human beings, here. It’s not just reasonable, but realistic, to think that there will eventually be disagreements on personnel moves. And Vrabel has spoken recently about how he actually wants some level of disagreement, as opposed to one person having dictatorial control.
But what happens when it boils down to two players, Vrabel wants one, and Wolf wants the other? Is Wolf really going to pick his guy? Not if he’s serious about not forcing players on Vrabel. To that end, does Wolf really have final say?
Logically speaking, Vrabel will be the one that actually makes those final choices. He seems willing to empower Wolf to make decisions, as well. But the Patriots will have to hope that this setup doesn’t devolve into dysfunction.
Matt Dolloff is a writer and digital content producer for 98.5 The Sports Hub. Read all of his articles here.
