The Patriots beat up Justin Herbert and the Chargers on Sunday as they advanced to the divisional round of the playoffs with a dominant 16-3 over Los Angeles in front of a jubilant home crowd at Gillette Stadium.
They also beat up on their head coach, Mike Vrabel, who got a bloody lip while celebrating a big play near the end of the game. The former Patriots star loved it, too, as he was seen on the sidelines having a good laugh over it while trying to wipe the blood away.
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In case you missed it, Vrabel was fired up after Patriots defensive tackle Milton Williams slammed Herbert to the ground to seal the win with the team's sixth sack of the night. Their head coach then gave Williams a huge hug on the sideline and in doing so, got hit square in the lip by Williams's helmet.
Here's how that bloody scene played out:
Mike Vrabel powered through a hit from Milton Williams' helmet in the playoff win celly. 🤣 pic.twitter.com/nQzq4fZD9j
— Sunday Night Football on NBC (@SNFonNBC) January 12, 2026
Vrabel had some fun with that during his fired-up postgame locker room speech to the team.
"We said all along that you have to be willing to spill some blood and the big dogs come out in January," Vrabel said. "Milt came over there and he knocked the living s--- out of me. But I ain’t afraid to spill a little blood either."
Here's that speech:
You gotta be willing to spill some blood 😤 pic.twitter.com/yZvsrT56tp
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) January 12, 2026
Williams also had a funny line about it after the game, telling reporters: “I was turnt. I forgot he didn’t have a helmet on.”
The Patriots have been one of the biggest surprises of the 2025 NFL season and now they'll host another playoff game next Sunday. Maybe they'll spill more blood in that one, and maybe next time Vrabel will be a little more careful when he goes in for a hug.
Either way, the vibes are high in New England, and rightfully so.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Mike Vrabel Had Hilarious Line About Getting His Lip Bloodied After Win Over Chargers.
