When the San Francisco 49ers interviewed Mike Vrabel to be their new defensive coordinator it seemed like an opportunity that came out of left field for the current linebackers coach of the Houston Texans. Apparently Bill Belichick “strongly recommended” Vrabel to Chip Kelly for the job, per Albert Breer in his weekend notebook on NFL.com.
Ultimately, Vrabel ended up declining the offer. Many around the league felt like this was a slam against Kelly and his offense, which, because of its fast pace actually means more time on the field for the defense.
However, Breer believes there was a different angle at play:
“Conversely, my sense is the decision for Vrabel (who was strongly recommended to Kelly by his former coach, Bill Belichick) was a tough one, and as much about family and loyalty to Bill O’Brien as anything. He’ll return to Houston as a) a possible heir to current DC Romeo Crennel and b) a potentially hot coordinator candidate for the next coaching carousel in 2017.”
It’s impossible to know what Vrabel’s reasons were for turning the job down, but as Breer pointed out in his opening statement on this subject, just getting the opportunity in his second year coaching in the NFL was a huge opportunity.
He is set up perfectly in Houston to take over for Crennel, who is 68 years old. Not only that, but there is no doubt that the Texans feature a more attractive defensive lineup at this time than the one currently set up in San Francisco. Perhaps if the 49ers still had a star-studded lineup this would have been an easy call for Vrabel to make.
The former linebacker appears to have a bright future ahead of him, no matter what he decides to do. When you’re getting strong recommendations from Belichick, you’re doing something right in this league.