Bills Chat: A Pro Football Podcast
Jun 29, 2026 · 52 min · 10 segments
With players reporting back to the area for the start of Training Camp in a month, the guys are back from some time off in the summer with an old series over the next weeks; "Rivals Series!" Join Josh…
Josh McCartyHost
It is important to figure out was last year a blip or have the Patriots really overtaken the Bills? How hard is this path going to be to the AFC East? And are the Jets and Dolphins for layups? Are we going to have another situation like last season where the Bills drop one of those four games and it ends up impacting them in the standings? All that being said, Luca, let's get down to it, and let's start with the team that dethroned the Bills last year, the New England Patriots.
We know Mike Rabel has his own issues going on off the field, but before we get into team roster building, on the field, where does Rabel rank for you as head coaches go? In the league or at least just in the division? Oh, I think in the division, it's Vrabel and everybody else.
Until Brady can prove otherwise.
Yeah, I would say for Vrabel last season, solidified himself in my eyes I'm going to go top six I'm just that's without me truly having a list of the current head coaches right now in the NFL I will say there's heavy turnover in the sense of long regimes no longer being there of course the bills being part of that situation with McDermott being gone but you also have Tomlin and Harbaugh gone from their previous roles because of course Harbaugh is now with the Giants that Harbaugh is Um, but, uh, I would say we're able without truly looking at a list in front of me going off the top of my head last season.
He's definitely top six.
In my opinion, I just think Vrabel is the ultimate football guy as a head coach who truly also understands how to generally get the most out of all players and positions, put them in places to succeed.
make them confident as well as they're doing whatever their job is.
And he's very much what I believe to be by far the most successful Belichick disciple, right? Like you think of about Belichick disciples and honestly, most of it's hot garbage.
Uh, but Rabel seems to be the exception, uh, with I believe that being because he's an Ohio football guy.
Like there's just, there's that thing where it's, it almost feels genetic level to him where that's what he was born to be.
He understands the game at a very high level, knows how to dumb it down well as well.
in the dressing room, in the meeting rooms, all of that such, he has an entire roster understanding what's the job at hand.
And then on game days itself, he truly grasps the entire picture.
He knows what's needed.
He knows all the little intricacies and things that need to happen to maximize whatever the situation calls for.
Um, He just he you would never question Vrabel at this point on game days or anything that he's ever doing anything other than what's best for the team at that moment in time.
And that's I'm prefacing that absolutely with saying on the field come Sundays or whenever their games are that that is the most important thing to him.
And he fully is focused on that task at hand.
um on game days so uh i i i think it's it's and you can correct me if you believe otherwise but i would say top six is absolutely a spot he deserves to be at this moment
And then just kind of scrolling through in my brain, I think Rabel's probably in that next wave where I would put a Kevin O'Connell, who we've now seen elevate, like Sam Darnold to get him paid.
It is important to figure out was last year a blip or have the Patriots really overtaken the Bills? How hard is this path going to be to the AFC East? And are the Jets and Dolphins for layups? Are we going to have another situation like last season where the Bills drop one of those four games and it ends up impacting them in the standings? All that being said, Luca, let's get down to it, and let's start with the team that dethroned the Bills last year, the New England Patriots.
We know Mike Rabel has his own issues going on off the field, but before we get into team roster building, on the field, where does Rabel rank for you as head coaches go? In the league or at least just in the division? Oh, I think in the division, it's Vrabel and everybody else.
Until Brady can prove otherwise.
Yeah, I would say for Vrabel last season, solidified himself in my eyes I'm going to go top six I'm just that's without me truly having a list of the current head coaches right now in the NFL I will say there's heavy turnover in the sense of long regimes no longer being there of course the bills being part of that situation with McDermott being gone but you also have Tomlin and Harbaugh gone from their previous roles because of course Harbaugh is now with the Giants that Harbaugh is Um, but, uh, I would say we're able without truly looking at a list in front of me going off the top of my head last season.
He's definitely top six.
In my opinion, I just think Vrabel is the ultimate football guy as a head coach who truly also understands how to generally get the most out of all players and positions, put them in places to succeed.
make them confident as well as they're doing whatever their job is.
And he's very much what I believe to be by far the most successful Belichick disciple, right? Like you think of about Belichick disciples and honestly, most of it's hot garbage.
Uh, but Rabel seems to be the exception, uh, with I believe that being because he's an Ohio football guy.
Like there's just, there's that thing where it's, it almost feels genetic level to him where that's what he was born to be.
He understands the game at a very high level, knows how to dumb it down well as well.
in the dressing room, in the meeting rooms, all of that such, he has an entire roster understanding what's the job at hand.
And then on game days itself, he truly grasps the entire picture.
He knows what's needed.
He knows all the little intricacies and things that need to happen to maximize whatever the situation calls for.
Um, He just he you would never question Vrabel at this point on game days or anything that he's ever doing anything other than what's best for the team at that moment in time.
And that's I'm prefacing that absolutely with saying on the field come Sundays or whenever their games are that that is the most important thing to him.
And he fully is focused on that task at hand.
um on game days so uh i i i think it's it's and you can correct me if you believe otherwise but i would say top six is absolutely a spot he deserves to be at this moment
And then just kind of scrolling through in my brain, I think Rabel's probably in that next wave where I would put a Kevin O'Connell, who we've now seen elevate, like Sam Darnold to get him paid.
The rest of this transcript — segmented and speaker-labeled, so you land on the exact moment something was said
Search every transcript — by keyword, by phrase, or by meaning, across every show Radar indexes
Trends — what is surging across podcasts, measured against its own baseline
Alerts — when a name you follow appears in a newly indexed episode
No account is needed to search Radar.