- 10 hours ago
Tom E Curran from NBC Sports Boston joined Rich and Ken to talk about the latest on the Patriots , including the Mike Vrabel/Dianna Russini that recently surfaced.
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00:00Tommy Curran on WEI is presented by Drains by James, Eastern Mass's top provider of drain and sewer cleaning and
00:05repair,
00:06by your New England Chevy dealers, Together Let's Drive, and he is powered by Verizon.
00:11And Tommy Curran, a Van Hagar fan, much less not a Van Halen one as much.
00:16If I'm not mistaken, isn't that right, Tommy Curran?
00:18Terrible mistake. That's a terrible mistake, a terrible misread.
00:23You were more 1984 than 5150, right?
00:26No, I was a diver down guy.
00:28Okay. Now we're talking. Now I know you're a real fan.
00:31That's what a real fan would say.
00:32You're not picking any of those super commercial OU812 crap.
00:37You're going diver down on us.
00:39Do you know what I'm really excited about that I saw last night on August 26, 2026?
00:44What's that?
00:46Squeeze, Squeeze, Haircut 100, and Adamant.
00:51I'm going to be at the MGM.
00:52You know what? I hear you think of Squeeze.
00:54I just think of a concert with a lot of people snapping their fingers.
00:57Like, that's like snapping your fingers music.
01:00You're joking.
01:01Yeah, I mean, they're tempted by a fruit of another, right?
01:05Singles 45 and under.
01:06You know, that's not just a black coffee in bed, cool for cats.
01:11That's a great, that's the first band I ever saw.
01:14Wow.
01:15Oh, really?
01:16Yeah.
01:17Okay.
01:17So I'm at the Orpheum.
01:18Wow.
01:18Did Squeeze turn into Mike and the Mechanics?
01:21Is that what happened?
01:23I don't know.
01:24It was different until Brooke, and then they split.
01:28But they're very good.
01:30I'm surprised.
01:31I'm surprised you're looking down your nose at Squeeze.
01:33No, no, no.
01:34Squeeze is a band that I respect.
01:36It's just that when I hear their music, it just seems like snapping music.
01:40You went to black coffee in bed.
01:44Well, there's some finger snapping, but Take Me, I mean, yours is not a finger snapper.
01:48No, no, it is not.
01:50And Adamant will be fun.
01:51I don't know, like, how he's aged, but, you know, that seems, like, fairly upbeat.
01:56There you go.
01:57It's the one song I know.
01:59I don't really know more Adamant than the Goody Goody Two-Shoes.
02:02But, yeah, sure, that would seem good.
02:04That sounds like a show that Mike Reese would join you with.
02:06Is that correct?
02:08I don't know.
02:09It might be out of his reference point.
02:12It could be.
02:13It could be.
02:13Reese is a big concert goer.
02:14He is.
02:15I know that because I brought him to Gojira and Mastodon, and he almost got trampled.
02:18Yeah, he loved it.
02:21Well, Tommy Curran, let's talk about some non-squeeze news, and that is your New England Patriots.
02:27We'll get to Caleb and everything, but I do want to just get your take.
02:30A very obviously, like, what this means for the Patriots more than the salacious part of it,
02:37is that there continues to be more news coming out in pictures with Mike Vrabel and Diana Rossini,
02:43and, you know, there was the stuff that TMZ had yesterday of them on a boat.
02:45And as this continues to come out, and the news that maybe Diana Rossini is going to speak soon,
02:51I think the Daily Mail had a story that she's being courted by 60 Minutes and Good Morning America,
02:58which means the story is going to continue to stay out there.
03:01From what you are hearing, and the betting markets seem to be changing because of all this,
03:05whether it be, what do you think, what are the chances that Mike Vrabel is the coach?
03:11Yeah, right.
03:12What is your read on this?
03:13What are your chances, the chances that you think that Mike Vrabel is coach of the Patriots come week one?
03:18I would still say it's 80%, but I think what's unknown, the whole thing is entering uncharted territory.
03:26I mean, it's Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner were not covered like this.
03:29I mean, it only reminds me of the Tiger Woods situation in terms of the way it was covered, and
03:35more keeps coming out.
03:37But what's ironic about this is, does more truly keep coming out,
03:41or are we further updated with receipts and pictures of an ongoing relationship that we already knew existed?
03:47I think that Rich Keefe, you guys played a clip from him just a few minutes ago, it was the
03:51same thing.
03:52I mean, you know, I was on an early edition last night.
03:54And I said, what, are we going to get a picture of them having ice cream together?
03:58And that would recycle the next day of coverage.
04:02What does it mean?
04:03What does it mean?
04:04And I'm not saying it doesn't impact it, but what I think it does impact is if it continues to
04:11dribb and drab,
04:12and there's nothing that doesn't rise to the level of, well, let's put this out there,
04:17and it's done by TMZ or Page Six, who are doing their jobs.
04:21That's their raison d'etre, that's their reason to exist, it's what they do.
04:25Then we, in turn, react to it, and that feeds the next day of coverage.
04:30So at some point, I wonder how the mental health of individuals involved stands up.
04:37I mean, we're very mental health conscious, at least verbally,
04:42but in this instance, I'm looking at a situation where how much can Mike Vrabel withstand mentally?
04:49How much can his family withstand?
04:51How much can his wife, you know, deal with?
04:56Or his extended friends, or his parents?
04:58Or the same thing with Diana.
05:00I mean, how long?
05:01And I guess Diana has already moved on from her position,
05:05but I guess as it relates to Mike, is there a point at which he says,
05:09I don't want to get up in the morning and face this again.
05:11I have to do something.
05:13So that, I think, is an unknown because we don't know what's the endgame for covering it.
05:19Is it Mike opens a vein and stands at a podium and says,
05:23I have sinned.
05:24I did these things.
05:26Because I don't know what the endgame is.
05:30Honestly, I'm asking, what do you think the endgame could possibly be?
05:34So I think, Tom, and it sounds like you and I are kind of thinking along the same lines.
05:38First of all, I don't believe that this is something,
05:41and I still see reports of people speculating on this.
05:44I don't think this is something that anybody from the NFL or the Patriots would ever punish him for.
05:48But I do believe that there could be a breaking point where Mike Vrabel says,
05:54you know what, I got to take care of my family.
05:58I got to step away for a little bit.
06:00Let me do this.
06:01Let me take care of this.
06:03And when I'm ready to return, I'll let you know.
06:05And I can absolutely see the Patriots giving him that time.
06:08And I've told Ken this.
06:10I've told Ted this.
06:10Is that if he were to do something like that, and maybe he missed the first couple of weeks,
06:15like he comes back in week four or week five, it would be a hero's welcome.
06:20And you talk about when is this over?
06:22If he was to do something like that, I guarantee you,
06:26and I'm not even saying it's the right thing to do.
06:27I'm just saying that that to me would be the only scenario where he wouldn't be the coach week one,
06:32is that if he decided he had to take care of what was going on with his family.
06:36I think that everyone, people love to welcome someone back with open arms.
06:42And I believe that that would be the most realistic situation if he was not the coach week one.
06:50So it is, in essence, then, Rich, there has to be a pound of flesh taken,
06:56more than the humiliation, more than the standing at the podium,
07:00more than missing an important date on the NFL calendar and saying that he's going to counseling.
07:05There has to be a literal pound of flesh.
07:08I'm not saying you, that's an opinion.
07:09No, no, no.
07:10I'm telling you, Tom, you know what?
07:11When they came out and said, and I don't agree with this,
07:15but when they kind of mocked people for saying that this was nothing and that it was laughable,
07:21you know, it's like all of a sudden that just,
07:23that empowered everyone to come out with pictures and want that pound of flesh.
07:27You know what I mean?
07:27It's like almost as if...
07:28No, it is.
07:29Yeah.
07:30It's as if you get in a fight.
07:31Yep.
07:33And once the guy's down, because he started it,
07:38you're going to keep kicking.
07:39I would never do such a thing.
07:42I'm 316 and 3 in my life.
07:45So, but I mean, it's like, yeah, it's like, okay, we're going to keep...
07:51I mean, it's really unprecedented, but I don't think it's more than a non-zero chance.
07:58Yeah.
07:59Given the way that it just keeps going, because it's, as I said already, unprecedented,
08:04and you can't really forecast it, and there has to be a straw that would break the camel's back.
08:09I don't know why the straws need to have to be kept piling up, but it is, it is what
08:16we do.
08:17Is it, is it, how bad is it if he's not the coach?
08:20Like, like how much of a difference would it be football-wise if it wasn't Mike Vrabel,
08:24and it was most likely Josh McDaniels as the head coach?
08:29I think it's hard for the players, especially after what they accomplished last year,
08:34as you guys pointed out, in large part thanks to the guidance that Mike gave them
08:38and the way the players played, you know, for themselves, but for Mike as well,
08:43and the leadership he gave them.
08:45I also think, and Ted can speak to this, you know, it's a season that's kind of
08:49born under a bad sign already, and those distractions matter, Ted,
08:56and it would be a massive distraction if the guy who has been your leader,
09:00who galvanized the team, is not there, and someone else is in his place,
09:06and there's uncertainty as to when he'll return, and, well, this is, you know,
09:11is Josh in charge, or is Doug Marone in charge, or Thomas Brown in charge,
09:15and, you know, how do we operate with that person?
09:21Mike's going to be back in a few weeks.
09:23Ted, that's a lot of ambiguity to deal with for a team that needs purpose.
09:27Yeah, it's, by the way, Ted had to step out.
09:33He was on fire, and we had to cool him down.
09:35He said, Tommy Curran's talking about squeeze, I am out.
09:41Well, real quick, Tom, in the short term, is Vrabel around?
09:46How visible is he?
09:47Will he be around for rookie minicamp this weekend?
09:50I would, I haven't had any indication otherwise.
09:53Yeah.
09:54So, I mean, if he's at the season ticket hold this thing last week,
09:57I can't imagine he wouldn't be at the rookie minicamp.
09:59Yeah.
10:00Well, and they have Caleb Lomo, the first-round pick.
10:03The press conference was today.
10:04Do you get any kind of a read on his personality?
10:06I think last year it was kind of cool to see Will Campbell evolve.
10:09Well, Vrabel obviously put him on the stage at the end of the year,
10:12and he was keeping it light on Fridays.
10:14How about the new first-round tackle?
10:15What's he like?
10:16Very nice kid.
10:18Very personable.
10:20Very intelligent.
10:22Well-spoken.
10:23You know, and when I say well-spoken, you ask him a question.
10:28There's a beginning, a middle, and an end to the answer.
10:30You know, he doesn't veer off to whatever talking point.
10:35But a lot of it, too, I asked him about, you know, playing right tackle as opposed to left
10:39and if it's disorienting and whether he would have spoken with Will Campbell.
10:45And they were kind of, as you might expect, I'll play wherever they want me to play type
10:49answers.
10:50But he's going to have an opportunity, I think, to this year be an understudy.
10:56Is that what you want for your first-round pick?
10:58I think in the Patriots' circumstance, where they had better prospects who could contribute
11:04at positions of need that were deeper, like defensive end where they got Atkins,
11:09there was an advantage to, okay, we'll wait on the defensive end.
11:12He might play more readily, but we'll take this tackle because we're definitely going to need it.
11:18How concerned are you with Will Campbell after the way the season ended?
11:24Fairly.
11:26I've gone from not concerned at all by the first 11 or 12 games of the season,
11:33presuming that he was going to continue to get better and stronger.
11:35He didn't have a great game against Miles Garrett.
11:39I attribute a lot of his difficulties to an MCL that probably would have otherwise ended his season.
11:44But I think there's a mental component to playing that position, too, and a confidence component
11:50that a lot of the tackles and defensive ends who are in the media now did a great job of
11:55pointing out
11:56that his retreat that happened right after the snap when he did his set was almost presuming
12:04he's going to get around me.
12:06I need to get a deeper set here.
12:08And then he was just a little, again, I'm not an offensive line guy.
12:12But he would miss with his punch sometimes and not be accurate.
12:18So if you miss with your punch and you already have short arms, it's the person who's going to be
12:22empty
12:23and you're going to move like a shopping cart.
12:25I'm trying to think about, like, a situation where you've kind of had something similar
12:29to what the Patriots just did with Caleb bringing him in here.
12:32How it's, you know, obviously he's a great talent and he's somebody that you want out there on the line.
12:36But at the same time, it's almost, I don't want to say a warning or a wake-up call.
12:43But it does kind of seem that way, doesn't it?
12:46Like this could be, you know, they bring him in, but at the same time,
12:49you might just trying to be putting a fire under another player's ass.
12:53I don't know if it's fire lighting, but it is insurance, no doubt.
12:58I mean, I think break glass in case of emergency, what constitutes an emergency?
13:05Bad mistakes would constitute an emergency.
13:09Lack of focus, pre-snap penalties.
13:11He didn't have a hell of a lot of those.
13:12There were a couple last year.
13:15But he played well.
13:16That's the thing is he played during the season relative to expectations well.
13:22But did he play well for a fourth overall pick?
13:26I mean, that's what's hard is you selected him there.
13:30Yeah.
13:31So it would seem that, okay, well, we can't uproot him and say that was a mistake.
13:35He's not really a left tackle.
13:37But you have to do what's best for the football team.
13:39Right.
13:40Steph Diggs, Tommy, was acquitted of the chef charges.
13:43Do you think the Patriots would have any interest?
13:47And would that be an either-or Diggs or A.J. Brown or could both be in consideration?
13:52What's your take on that old thing?
13:55Dobbs feels like the direct replacement for Diggs.
14:00Diggs, and I would say that makes sense.
14:05Younger, just as fast, very good technician the way Diggs was.
14:09Certainly doesn't have the experience or overall resume of Diggs.
14:13But who's going to be better this year?
14:15It will definitely be worth monitoring who has a better season in 2026 because I think that's the direct comp.
14:21But what Diggs did last year shouldn't really be discounted in the terms of how many balls he caught and
14:28his success rate.
14:29He caught 82% of the balls that were thrown to him.
14:32He had 82 catches, over 1,000 yards.
14:35Will Dobbs match those if A.J. Brown is here?
14:39The jury will be out.
14:40Maybe not.
14:42But to me, I think that Dobbs already answers the question that there's no Diggs coming back.
14:46And the way that Schefter continues to say with a level of certainty that it will be a 2028 first
14:55-round pick leads me to believe that it's probably going to be a 2028 first-round pick.
15:00Yeah, but it's pretty much a certainty A.J. Brown is coming, right?
15:03I mean, all the reporting seems 100% certain that that's happening.
15:08Fete accompli, I think, Rich.
15:11Fete accompli.
15:12Yep, yep, just a matter of time.
15:13That was my second French reference.
15:17I imagine you with a nice baguette and a beret as you speak these words.
15:23Well, Tommy Curran, great stuff.
15:25As I said, this offseason is going to be interesting, way more interesting than any of us thought it was
15:29going to be.
15:30I can't believe, like, I'm looking at these percentages with Vrabel, and it's shocking to me.
15:37It really is.
15:38But who the hell knows?
15:40All I know is we're in for an interesting ride, and let's hope, obviously, everything—I just want to see some
15:45good football again.
15:46I'm looking at the Patriots on power rankings at No. 13, and I don't get it.
15:50Like, I don't know—
15:51Behind the Chargers and, like, all these—
15:52Yeah, they're, like, way lower than you would think a team that was—you know, I know that their schedule was
15:57easy, but my God, 13th in these power rankings.
16:01I'm just hoping this isn't a massive letdown of a season we're about to get.
16:06Me, too.
16:08All right, Tom.
16:09In the meantime, squeeze it up.
16:10That's right.
16:11Squeeze it up.
16:11Have yourself a good time snapping at the old Squeeze show, and—
16:14Thank you, my friend.
16:15All right.
16:16We'll talk to you soon, Tommy Curran.
16:17Talk to you guys soon.
16:18Thanks, man.
16:19Thanks, man.
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