Vrabel Outlasts all Other 2018 NFL Hires

The Tennessee Titans were one of seven franchises that changed coaches following the 2017 season. It is clear now they made the best decision.

NASHVILLE – Mike Vrabel is now the last man standing.

Monday’s news that the Indianapolis Colts fired coach Frank Reich means that Vrabel is the only one of seven NFL head coaches hired prior to the 2018 season who still has that job. The Tennessee Titans coach has more playoff wins (two) and more division titles (two) than the other six combined.

Reich was the only other one of the 2018 group who made it beyond four full seasons. He leaves the Colts with a 3-5-1 record this season, a 40-33-1 mark overall and two playoff appearances.

“I think Frank’s an unbelievable football coach, an unbelievable man,” Vrabel said Monday. “I’ve gotten to know Frank well during the time we’ve been in the division and some of the committees that we’ve been on.”

Vrabel won the last five head-to-head meetings between the two, including both this season. Overall, he was 6-4 against Reich, and he has a winning record against each of the others from that group who he faced. Steve Wilks was fired after one season in Arizona and never went against the Titans. Detroit fired Matt Patricia in 2020, weeks before the Lions played at Nissan Stadium.

A rundown of how Mike Vrabel fared head-to-head against the other NFL head coaches hired in 2018:

Frank Reich, Indianapolis – 6-4

Jon Gruden, Oakland – 1-0

Pat Shurmer, N.Y. Giants – 1-0

Matt Nagy, Chicago – 1-0

Steve Wilks, Arizona – 0-0

Matt Patricia, Detroit – 0-0

Chicago’s Matt Nagy got off to the best start of the group when he was named NFL Coach of the Year and led the Bears to the playoffs in his first season. Over the next three, though, his teams never finished above .500, and he was fired after a 6-11 record last season.

Vrabel, on the other hand, has shown real staying power. He is the 2021 Coach of the Year and has led Tennessee to a winning record in all four seasons. After Sunday’s 20-17 overtime loss at Kansas City, he is 46-27 in the regular season, a .630 winning percentage, and 2-3 in the postseason. After nine wins in his first two years, the Titans won 11 in 2020 and 12 in 2021.

Tennessee is 5-3 this season, two games up on Indianapolis and Jacksonville in the win column and is one of two first-place teams (Minnesota is the other) that is 3-0 against teams from its division.

“We all know what we sign up for,” Vrabel said. “This is the other side of it that’s probably not so … you know, it’s difficult. You never want to see anybody lose their job. (The Colts) made a decision, but I’ll, obviously, try to reach out to Frank and try to support him however I can.”