New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel will not speak to the media at the team’s pre–NFL Draft press conference amid an ongoing controversy involving NFL insider Dianna Russini.
Vrabel, 50, won’t appear at the team’s presser scheduled for Monday, April 13, ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported. Instead, Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf will speak to members of the media.
The 2026 NFL Draft begins on April 23 in Pittsburgh.
Vrabel conducted a pre-draft press conference last year, just months after he was hired as head coach in New England. This year, ESPN reported that Vrabel “isn’t expected to address reporters until the draft.”
While the shift in the team’s plans is noteworthy, USA Today reported on Sunday, April 12, that Vrabel was not listed as a participant in the press conference in a document released on March 12, weeks before Vrabel found himself ensnarled in the controversy with The Athletic’s Russini.
In pictures published by Page Six on Tuesday, April 7, Vrabel and Russini, 43, were seen linking fingers, sunbathing together and sharing a hot tub at a luxury resort in Sedona, Arizona. The photos were taken on March 28.
Shortly after the pictures went viral, Vrabel and Russini — who are both married — issued statements downplaying their relationship.
“These photos show a completely innocent interaction and any suggestion otherwise is laughable,” Vrabel told Page Six. “This doesn’t deserve any further response.”
Russini added, “The photos don’t represent the group of six people who were hanging out during the day. Like most journalists in the NFL, reporters interact with sources away from stadiums and other venues.”
The veteran NFL insider did not name any of the individuals in their group, and nobody else has come forward to say they were with Vrabel and Russini.
While The Athletic initially defended Russini in the immediate aftermath of the photos being published, the outlet announced an investigation had been opened into Russini’s conduct on Saturday, April 11.
“The Athletic is investigating the conduct of a senior NFL reporter, Dianna Russini, after the publication of photographs that showed her with Mike Vrabel, the head coach for the New England Patriots, according to a person familiar with the inquiry,” the outlet reported.
The report continued, “The Athletic’s editorial guidelines require that their journalists avoid any activities that pose a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict, so as not to call into question their credibility.”
During The Athletic’s investigation, Russini will not be permitted to work for the outlet.
