FOXBOROUGH – For the past 42 years Pro Football Hall of Famer Andre Tippett has collected a paycheck from the New England Patriots.
Which means he pretty much has seen it all, both ends of the NFL spectrum.
End of Miami Curse. One-win season. Two-win season. Two NFL strikes. A mid-season coaching firing. And, of course, several Super Bowls mixed in and around all of this.
A front row seat to the Patriots rollercoaster.
He has been through three ownership changes, two during his player career – Billy Sullivan to Victor Kiam in 1987; Kiam to James Busch Orthwein in 1992; Orthwein to Bob Kraft in 1994.
After his 11-year career as player, he has spent 30 years with the franchise’s community relations.
He has witnessed nine coaching changes over his four-decades plus run like the one he witnessed Monday.
Tippett was sitting in the second row as owner Bob Kraft and Mike Vrabel took turns at the podium.
He wouldn’t admit it, but his up front view seemed to portray approval.
There is a lot to like about Vrabel, said Tippett, who also played the similar pass-rushing, outside linebacker position.
“He played the game right and was damn good, a winner,” said Tippett. “He’s a (Patriots) Hall of Famer. That’s saying something. And he had success coaching in this league. His teams were physically and mentally tough. I always liked Mike and his style.”
The coaching change on Monday, bringing on Mike Vrabel, already “feels” like a few of the others coaching changes he witnessed; like Raymond Berry in 1984; like Bill Parcells in 1993; like Bill Belichick in 2000.
While all had different playbooks and methods, their tenets were all from the same blueprint.
“I like what Mike said,” noted Tippett, standing with his trusty cane just two months after hip surgery. “Accountability. He will hold his players accountable. You can’t win in this league without it.”
Tippett recalled Berry replacing Ron Meyer mid-way through the 1984 season. He was not one of those “tough guy” coaches, out of the Parcells school, but he commanded respect in his actions.
“He realized we were a talented team,” recalled Tippett. “We had the veterans from the Chuck Fairbanks era, like (Steve) Grogan, Nellie (Steve Nelson) and (John) Hannah, but we also had some really good young players. We had a lot of leaders. He held us accountable and we held each other accountable. We were good, man.”
Things fell apart rather quickly after the Super Bowl loss to the Bears, another playoff season, before two coaching changes and Parcells.
While Belichick’s reign took a full year, it only took one year before one of the greatest runs in modern pro sports history, including six championships and nine Super Bowl berths in 19 seasons.
“Parcells and Belichick were from the same mold,” said Tippett. “They were different personalities, but they demanded accountability. They both had talent, too, but their teams played for the team first. It was all about winning. You know it when you see it.”
Which brings us to Vrabel, who has cache as a former player and head coach, and the fact that everyone will know who is in charge.
“It will be very important getting talent. We had Dick Steinberg, who brought me and a lot of guys in the (1980s),” said Tippett. “We need great football players. And accountability.”
The road to winning just got a little more established on Monday. But as Vrabel blurted out, after the picture session with Kraft and their wives was complete, “It’s time to go to work.”
Tippett concurred.
“It’s all about accountability,” said Tippett. “Winning is hard in this league. But it is fun.”
You can email Bill Burt at bburt@eagletribune.com.