Mike Vrabel’s first comments on his return to Tennessee

It's been back-to-back weeks of successful 'homecoming' stories for the New England Patriots. Two weeks ago wide receiver Stefon Diggs had a monster game in his first time playing back in Buffalo, and this past week multiple former LSU players showed out in their return to Louisiana. Their three game 'road trip' wraps up with another return game this week as head coach Mike Vrabel faces the Tennessee Titans.

Vrabel was the head coach of the Titans from 2018 to 2023. He went 54-45 during that time, with three trips to the playoffs including a 2019 AFC Championship Game appearance. In 2021 he was named NFL coach of the year. The team started undergoing a retooling of the roster beginning in 2022, and Vrabel was fired after back-to-back sub.-500 seasons.

As Vrabel's return looms, it's likely to be one of the biggest storylines around this game. It also may be one of the bigger storylines in the NFL this week, given the success he's having with his new team and the fact that his old team fired his replacement on Monday afternoon, after just 23 games. Speaking to reporters on Monday morning, Vrabel shared his first thoughts on going back to Nashville.

"There is going to be, probably, a lot to be said about this," Vrabel said. "I think it would file under the category of, 'is it interesting or important?' I would probably say this would be very interesting. But in the end, not very important to our preparation or what we need to continue to try to do to improve as a team. But having spent six years there or seven years there, I think it'll be nice to see some people that I haven't seen in a few years that helped us win, players and staff. But we've got a huge job here to do as we prepare for them."

So Vrabel didn't go into his full feelings on the return, but that's not exactly a non-answer either. It will be interesting to see what his players think of the topic throughout this week.

Will the Patriots go 3-for-3 in homecomings come Sunday? You can catch the call of the game on 98.5 The Sports Hub, starting with pregame coverage at 10:00 a.m. ET.