As the 2025 NFL trade deadline approached, a new report surfaced suggesting that issues between Mike Vrabel and his former team, the Tennessee Titans, were still affecting his job, despite having been fired in 2023 and starting his new role with the New England Patriots.
There were many players rumored to be on the Patriots’ radar ahead of the deadline, a few of whom Vrabel was familiar with from his previous days as a head coach. Given that reporters suggested they would be interested in running backs and pass rushers, it made sense that two players on their radar were RB Tony Pollard and EDGE Arden Key.
Both were presumed to be trade candidates, and the Patriots had the bandwidth to get them in the door. But a rumor about an ongoing grudge from Titans owner Amy Adams Skrunk made sure those trades wouldn’t happen, as she was allegedly still upset about how things ended with Vrabel.
Now that no trades were made and the deadline has passed, most have moved on from the possibility that the rumor is true. However, FS1 analyst Rachel Nichols has revealed that she, too, heard the rumor and confirmed it as accurate.
The juiciest story of the NFL trade deadline? That the Titans reportedly wouldn’t trade with the Patriots yesterday at the NFL trade deadline because…Tennessee’s owner had ill will about the end of Coach Mike Vrabel’s tenure there. The Patriots had been interested in RB Tony… pic.twitter.com/4hYI60KGgI
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) November 5, 2025
The Titans continue to hold a grudge against Mike Vrabel despite firing him two years ago
In a discussion about happenings across the NFL amid a flurry of trades, Nichols spoke about what she called the “juiciest” story of the trade deadline, sharing that chatter about tensions between Skrunk and Vrabel was real and the Titans were not interested in trading any player to New England.
It’s an unfortunate development considering the Patriots could have benefitted from acquiring players like Key or Pollard, but it’s also confusing how a grudge would prevent the Titans from trading players for draft picks to help their team get better.
Regardless of feelings surrounding Vrabel’s departure, the Titans are not in a position to hold onto players that other teams are willing to trade for. They might want to keep them if they are pillars of the roster, but since they were already reportedly shopping them, it makes no sense not to reap the reward of shipping them for more draft capital.
Instead, they’ll now deal with the consequences of not moving players others deemed desirable and hope next year’s free agency and the draft picks they have will be enough to drastically upgrade their current roster.
The Patriots, on the other hand, will have to look elsewhere for upgrades if they still feel they need more help at running back and at EDGE. That might mean elevating players from the practice squad, or waiting until next offseason to add that kind of talent.
No matter what, though, it’s clear they won’t be doing any business with the Titans any time soon.
