Mike Vrabel supported his players Monday morning after the Patriots beat the Bills in Buffalo.
Bills safety CJ Gardner-Johnson made derisive comments toward the Patriots after Sunday’s game, specifically calling wide receiver Efton Chism a “practice squad player.”
Vrabel was asked about those on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show.”
“For a guy who’s been on eight teams in four years? I mean, I guess he knows the drill,” Vrabel said.
Chism made the game-winning catch in the Patriots’ 29-26 victory Sunday.
That angered Gardner-Johnson, whose career has taken him from the Saints (2019-2021) to the Eagles (2022), Lions (2023), Eagles (2024), Texans (2025), Ravens (2025), Bears (2025) and Bills (2026).
Ironically, Chism never spent any time on an NFL practice squad. He has been on the Patriots’ 53-man roster since entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2025. Gardner-Johnson, however, spent a week on the Ravens’ practice squad last season before being cut.
“We’re not talking about any scoreboard topics,” Gardner-Johnson said after the game. “A high guy made a hell of a catch. He probably won’t be heard from again. Respectfully. I say that with a lot of confidence, because it’s like (Maye) didn’t put his faith in his best player. He would have thrown to (Romeo) the Doubs or someone else, but they won the game. Either way, they didn’t do (expletive) better than us. We’ve got to play better. They can score that, we will come back to see them again. So they better have that same energy.
“They scored what? Twenty points? They barely scored. They struggled the whole game. … A practice squad player made a hell of a play. If you do it again, he probably won’t do it again. Simple.”
Chism made the game-winning catch, but Doubs also had a strong performance, catching six passes on nine targets for 58 yards with two touchdowns.
The 2-2 Patriots had more points, total yards, rushing yards and passing yards than the Bills, who entered Week 4 with a 4-0 record.
The two teams will face off again in Week 13 on December 6. The big question is whether Gardner-Johnson will still be a part of the Bills or if he will have joined his ninth team by then.
Gn sports
