Lewis Cine, a safety who was a 2022 first-round pick of the Vikings, had a tryout with the Patriots on Tuesday.
Cine played only 10 defensive snaps during his time with the Vikings. He suffered a very serious leg injury during Week Four of his rookie year, ending that season, and when he returned for his second season he was used almost exclusively on special teams. The Vikings cut him before the 2024 season.
After catching on with the Bills in 2024 Cine played in one regular-season game for Buffalo. This year he joined the Eagles’ practice squad in January and was with them throughout the postseason and offseason but did not make the regular-season roster.
Cine was one of three defensive backs the Patriots worked out. They also took a look at Marcus Banks and Tre Hawkins.
Bill Belichick’s first season as a collegiate head coach has been a disaster, but Tuesday brought a reminder that his time in the NFL was much more successful.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced that Belichick is one of 12 coaches that their blue-ribbon committee has advanced to the next stage of the selections process. That group will be whittled to nine in the near future and a finalist from that group will be selected in mid-November. That finalist will then be voted on by the Hall of Fame selection committee.
Belichick is joined by four other Super Bowl-winning head coaches in Tom Coughlin, Mike Holmgren, George Seifert, and Mike Shanahan. Buddy Parker also coached the Lions to two NFL titles in the pre-Super Bowl era.
The other coaches to advance in the process are Bill Arnsparger, Alex Gibbs, Chuck Knox, Dan Reeves, Marty Schottenheimer, and Clark Shaughnessy.
The Patriots have added a linebacker that has familiarity with head coach Mike Vrabel.
New England announced on Monday that the club has claimed Caleb Murphy off waivers.
Murphy, 25, was most recently with the Chargers, appearing in six games for the team this season. He was on the field for 76 percent of special teams snaps in games played and 34 percent of defensive snaps. He record a half-sack and 12 total tackles.
Murphy started his career with the Titans as an undrafted free agent in 2023 when Vrabel was Tennessee’s head coach. Murphy has appeared in a total of 14 games with the Titans and Chargers.
After being fired by the Titans, Mike Vrabel spent most of 2024 with the Browns, working as a coaching and personnel consultant.
It was always meant to be a temporary stop, as Vrabel was set to become one of the best options in the 2025 head coaching cycle. With a 5-2 start, it’s clear that the Patriots are headed in the right direction with Vrabel at the helm.
In Week 8, Vrabel and the Patriots will host the Browns. Vrabel said on Monday that he enjoyed his time with Cleveland and the people in the building.
“I enjoyed working with Kevin [Stefanski], the offensive staff, Tommy Rees and Chad [O’Shea],” Vrabel said. “I played with [special teams coordinator] Bubba [Ventrone]. So, a lot of good young coaches. Jim Schwartz — I had a really good relationship with Schwartzy. They’re playing really well. They’re coming off a huge win. They’re a great defense, offense is physical, physical O-line. Running backs are doing a nice job.
“So, we’re going to get prepared as soon as we shut the door here with the Titans and moving on to the Browns.”
Vrabel noted that he felt the Browns had “great communication” in their building, though he wasn’t trying to get involved in day-to-day operations.
“I was trying to help the players. I was trying to help the young coaches,” Vrabel said. “That wasn’t something that I got involved with. I tried to help with player development. But they have a great organization as far as the structure and everything. But I tried to be involved with the young coaches and with the young players, and help them in practice and help them develop.”
From an analytics standpoint, the Browns have a reputation for being heavy into data. Did working with Cleveland change Vrabel’s perspective in that area?
“I mean, that’s certainly something that they believe strongly in,” Vrabel said. “We were getting involved with it in Tennessee, probably not to the extent that Cleveland has. We’ve added, and I feel like we all do. That can help us on a coaching level, and also help us as we look at personnel. So, we’ll continue to try to enhance that department, that area and how they can help us looking at what we do internally, but also externally as we look at players and acquiring players. But probably won’t get to that extent of where they’re at right now overnight.”
With the way the Patriots have been playing in 2025 under Vrabel, they may not need to do so anytime soon.
Patriots quarterback Drake Maye set a franchise record for completion percentage in a single game in Sunday’s win over the Titans and he also did something that no one from any team had done in the Super Bowl era.
According to the NFL, Maye is the first player in that time frame to complete 90 percent of his passes while throwing for at least 200 yards and rushing for at least 50 yards in a single game. Maye finished the day 21-of-23 for 222 yards and two touchdowns while also running eight times for 62 yards.
It was the third time this season that Maye has completed at least 80 percent of his passes and he said in his postgame press conference that he is “just trying to throw it to the guys that’s open and they’re making great plays.” Head coach Mike Vrabel was more willing to credit Maye for making the offense hum.
“I think there is an athleticism to him that’s really, really cool,” Vrabel said, via a transcript from the team. “I think he’s really accurate from all different spots, whether it’s in the pocket, off platform. He really has done a nice job so far spreading the football around. But there is an accuracy to him that has been really good for us.”
Maye has thrown for at least 200 yards in every one of the Patriots’ games this season and he’s posted a passer rating over 100 in the last six of them. The longer Maye stays in that groove, the likelier it will be that the Patriots are playing beyond Week 18.
