Flores, Vrabel Set For Reunion When Dolphins Visit Titans

2 years ago 280

MIAMI GARDENS (AP) — The twelvemonth was 2008. Brian Flores was elevated from his scouting relation and became a full-fledged adjunct manager with New England, successful what would beryllium Mike Vrabel’s last play playing linebacker for the Patriots.

So, officially, Flores coached Vrabel.

Flores doesn’t retrieve it rather that way.

“I didn’t manager Vrabel,” Flores said. “I would accidental helium astir apt much coached maine arsenic a young feline successful New England erstwhile helium was determination and helium was a player. He was beauteous overmuch a manager connected the tract then. I surely didn’t manager him but I person a batch of respect for him.”

Semantics of who coached whom notwithstanding, there’s nary debating that Flores and Vrabel volition some beryllium coaching connected Sunday, erstwhile Flores and the Miami Dolphins sojourn Vrabel and the Tennessee Titans successful a crippled with monolithic playoff implications for some teams. A Miami triumph would enactment the Dolphins (8-7) connected the brink of the playoffs; a Tennessee triumph would springiness the Titans (10-5) the AFC South title.

And to perceive Vrabel archer it, not lone did Flores manager him successful 2008, but they’re inactive coaching 1 different now.

“I cognize that was, I americium sure, lingua successful cheek,” Vrabel said of Flores’ recollection of that 2008 season. “Brian is precise intelligent. I person continued to bounce ideas disconnected of him adjacent though we are competitors successful the offseason. There are guys that you spot successful this league.”

For Vrabel, Flores is 1 of them.

The 2008 play was an anomaly for the Patriots; Tom Brady tore his ACL successful Week 1 and was gone for the season, and New England inactive finished 11-5 but coiled up missing the playoffs — the lone clip that happened successful a 17-season span betwixt 2003 and 2019. Vrabel got traded to Kansas City aft that play and played the past 2 years of his vocation with the Chiefs earlier starting retired connected his coaching path.

But Flores and Vrabel forged a enslaved that season, and it has gotten adjacent stronger implicit the years.

“I deliberation his toughness, his acumen, I deliberation that shows up and you spot it successful the mode his squad plays,” Flores said. “He’s idiosyncratic I telephone a friend. I person a large woody of respect for him. … I deliberation they’ve done a batch of truly bully things implicit determination gathering a team, gathering the culture. A batch of things that we would similar to emulate.”

The Dolphins thin to travel the unofficial NFL publication pursuing a game; instrumentality 24 hours to observe a triumph oregon lament a loss, past get backmost to enactment connected the adjacent opponent. Playing a Monday nighttime crippled earlier this week — a triumph astatine New Orleans — didn’t let Flores that window, arsenic helium had already started looking astatine the Titans earlier the Dolphins-Saints crippled happened.

And conscionable a fewer minutes aft that triumph successful New Orleans went final, Flores made wide helium had already turned the leafage to this week and the matchup with Vrabel and the Titans.

“The crippled up is going to beryllium arsenic pugnacious arsenic immoderate crippled we’re going to play,” helium said.

Watch the Dolphins instrumentality connected the Titans astatine 1 p.m. Sunday connected CBS4, your authoritative Dolphins tv station.

MORE NEWS: American Medical Association Urges People To Make Better Health Choices In 2022