'We want to be inclusive': After Christian player posts Bible verses, Patriots coach says team needs to be 'educated'
New England Patriots Head Coach Mike Vrabel says there is "a fine line" between personal expression and not being inclusive enough.
The coach and former Patriots player spoke to media in a formal setting on Tuesday and fielded questions about one of the team's star running backs.
'We're trying to educate them.'
Particularly, Vrabel was asked about TreVeyon Henderson, who responded to the falling-out a Chicago Bulls player had with his team this week. The Bulls released player Jaden Ivey after he expressed disagreement with gay pride celebrations in the NBA while stating his support for Christianity.
In response to the story, Henderson, who describes himself as a "follower of Jesus Christ," posted a series of Bible verses on his X account and only one time provided his own commentary.
"What path will you choose?" Henderson wrote, alongside images of Bible verses.
Vrabel was asked by a reporter how he differentiates between conduct that is detrimental to a team — the Bulls' official reason for releasing Ivey — and a player's right to personal expression.
"I think there is a fine line. I'm gonna tell you, I love TreVeyon," Vrabel quickly replied. "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 [the players] to be able to express what they believe in their heart and in their mind."
That was Vrabel's setup before pivoting toward progressive ideology.
"But I also want to make sure that they're educated, and we want to be inclusive," he said firmly.
Henderson's posts hardly amounted to anything other than a copy and paste of Scripture. However, Coach Vrabel implied the posts could make others feel uncomfortable or possibly harm the team.
He also suggested that everyone with the Patriots "wants to provide an environment for people to, one, feel comfortable, but also to share their personal beliefs. And then also we represent the team, and we represent the organization."
Vrabel continued, saying that while his players cannot have their phones taken away from them, they certainly need to be educated, a term he repeatedly used.
"We just want to educate them to — never going to tell them how to feel. Certainly want to make sure that they understand that their actions represent something more than just themselves."
He concluded, "So I do think there's a fine line. We're always talking about those kinds of things. We're trying to educate them."
Henderson was his team's top running back last season, garnering 911 yards on 180 carries in his rookie season. Carries were split with now-sixth-year player Rhamondre Stephenson, who had 603 yards on 130 carries.
Despite Henderson leading the team, he is listed as New England's second-string for the upcoming season by ESPN, likely because Stevenson had double the number of carries in the NFL playoffs.
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