A coaching journey he needed to take, and the former star linebacker uniquely suited to put a faltering franchise back on track.

Vrabel made his own path by first serving as a linebackers coach for Ohio State in 2011. He also worked as a defensive line coach for that program in 2012 and 2013 before taking his talents to to NFL, where he worked under Bill O’Brien with the Texans as the linebackers coach and defensive coordinator.

FOXBOROUGH — The shotgun marriage between new Patriots coach Mike Vrabel and executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf will remain in place, at least for now.