In less than a week, after photos emerged of former Athletic NFL reporter Dianna Russini and New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel together at an adults-only resort in Arizona, Russini had resigned while under internal investigation at the New York Times-owned sports outlet.
Vrabel, meanwhile, appears unlikely to face any kind of pushback or punishment from the NFL.
On Friday evening, Ben Strauss at ESPN published a series of details about what was happening behind the scenes from the time Russini found out the New York Post was going to publish the photos through her resignation.
Among them was the revelation that the NFL was not currently investigating Vrabel for any potential violations of the league’s personal conduct policy, which requires players, coaches, and executives to avoid “conduct detrimental to the integrity of and public confidence in the National Football League.”
Strauss also reached out to the Patriots, but they did not respond to a question about whether they would review the coach’s relationship with Russini.
Vrabel and Russini have a longstanding professional relationship dating back to Russini’s time as head coach of the Tennessee Titans. The photos and the speculation around them have raised many questions about how the NFL insider might have coordinated with the coach to influence stories and coverage, though there is no definitive proof that anything of the sort happened.
The lack of a league or franchise investigation into Vrabel isn’t too surprising. Some have cited a double standard in the culpability of him and Russini, while others note a moral and ethical imbalance between their situations.
For his part, Vrabel skipped the Patriots’ pre-draft press conference, though he will have to speak with the media following the 2026 NFL Draft, and one would assume he’ll have to speak on the matter for the first time.
Strauss did report that Russini “coordinated with Vrabel about how to respond to the Post,” and that neither of them was able to provide “compelling evidence” that could have potentially influenced or killed the story. He also reported that Russini was never able to provide “sufficient evidence” to support her version of events to The Athletic before her resignation. Perhaps those revelations will influence how the league or Patriots consider the situation, but no one is going to hold their breath.
