Mike Vrabel set the tone from his first official day at the job. Speaking to the media at his introductory presser on January 13, the New England Patriots’ new head coach explained the play style he is looking for from his team.

“Aggressive but not reckless,” was the key phrase at the time. On Friday night, in his team’s preseason opener against the Washington Commanders, the Patriots will get a first real chance to put Vrabel’s words to the test.

The Patriots will do so against a familiar opponent, at least to a degree. The Commanders already visited the Gillette Stadium facility earlier this week, for a two-hour joint practice that already saw Vrabel’s team tests in limits as far as the controlled aggression he is looking for is concerned.

Things between the two teams got feisty on mu

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