Newly surfaced photos reportedly show Mike Vrabel, Dianna Russini at NYC bar in 2020

1 month ago 13

More photos of New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel and NFL insider Dianna Russini were published Thursday by the New York Post’s Page Six, a day after Vrabel announced he'll miss Day 3 of the NFL Draft to seek counseling.

The images reportedly are from 2020, six years before Vrabel and Russini were photographed holding hands, hugging and hanging poolside at a luxury hotel in Arizona.

The newly surfaced pictures show Vrabel and Russini sitting closely together, reportedly at a New York City bar. Vrabel was the head coach of the Tennessee Titans, and Russini was working for ESPN at the time the photos were reportedly taken.

In those images, Vrabel is shown touching Russini’s arm and even leaning in toward her.

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Vrabel and Russini were at New York’s Tribeca Tavern for at least an hour in the early hours of March 11, 2020, according to Page Six, which also reported that, when the photos were snapped, Vrabel was married and Russini was six months away from getting engaged to her now-husband.

Russini resigned from her post at The Athletic on April 14, a week after Page Six published its first Vrabel-Russini pictures.

Russini has been a top NFL newsbreaker who’s covered Vrabel and the league as a whole for years. She stepped down from her position at The Athletic while The New York Times-owned outlet investigated the situation.

Last week, she published a copy of her resignation letter on X, where she has more than 450,000 followers.

“I have covered the NFL with professionalism and dedication throughout my career, and I stand behind every story I have ever published,” Russini wrote in that letter.

She noted: “ … Commentators in various media have engaged in self-feeding speculation that is simply unmoored from the facts. Moreover, this media frenzy is hurtling forward without regard for the review process The Athletic is trying to complete. It continues to escalate, fueled by repeated leaks, and I have no interest in submitting to a public inquiry that has already caused far more damage than I am willing to accept.

“Rather than allowing this to continue, I have decided to step aside now — before my current contract expires on June 30. I do so not because I accept the narrative that has been constructed around this episode, but because I refuse to lend it further oxygen or to let it define me or my career.”

This story is being updated.

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