New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel has softened his stance on running back TreVeyon Henderson’s social activism since April, when he cautioned the player to remember that he represents the team.
Vrabel was asked Friday about Henderson’s defense of a Massachusetts couple who say they lost custody of their daughter to DCF after refusing to allow her to transition to a boy.
Authorities have made it clear that the issue had to do with allegations of abuse by the couple, although they have not been convicted of any crime.
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Henderson spent significant time the past couple of days defending the couple on social media and with beat reporters on Thursday.
And, none of this has really anything to do with football. But Vrabel was asked on Friday how he views Henderson’s public position considering in April the coach spoke about there being a “fine line” when it comes to expressing personal beliefs publicly.
“I think he’s handled it, I mean, about as maturely,” Vrabel said. “I think he tried to explain himself. TreVeyon is a special person, great teammate. I love being around him.
“And I think he pretty much spoke on what he thought and what he believes, and I think that that’s impressive. You know, for him to be able to speak on it, and [I] leave it up to him.”
So, who is this coach?
He is very different from the one who sat at a roundtable with reporters during the NFL annual meeting in Arizona in April and did not embrace Henderson advocating on behalf of former Chicago Bulls player Jaden Ivey.
Ivey, you may recall, was released by the Bulls after he spoke out against the NBA promoting Pride Month and “unrighteousness.”
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This is how Vrabel reacted to Henderson’s defense of Ivey in April.
“I think there’s a fine line,” Vrabel said. “I’ll tell you, I love TreVeyon. I love the person. He cares deeply about our team. He cares deeply about his faith. He cares deeply about his family. His wife. The people in our building.
“And so, I want them to be able to express what they believe in their heart and in their mind. But also, I want to make sure that they’re educated. We want to be inclusive. Everything we want to do wants to provide an environment for people to feel comfortable.
“But also to share their personal beliefs and, also, we represent the team and we represent the organization.”
There was none of that get “educated” talk from Vrabel on Friday because perhaps he realized those comments suggested his player didn’t know what he was talking about.
And there was definitely none of the “represent the team” narrative from Vrabel because, well, we know why.
Vrabel didn’t exactly “represent” the Patriots well during the offseason when it was discovered by Page Six that he spent the days prior to an Arizona meeting with former NFL reporter Dianna Russini at a Sedona resort.
It wasn’t a good look for the Patriots that their married coach was photographed with a married female reporter holding hands, embracing and spending time together at a pool and hot tub.
That entire episode was obviously embarrassing for Vrabel. But perhaps it was also instructive in that he has realized a player taking a moral stand on a topic is not representing the team poorly regardless of whether some people disagree or not.
So, maybe something good has come out of the Russini scandal for Vrabel. Maybe.
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