Mike Vrabel announced he will seek counseling this weekend and miss Day 3 of the NFL draft amid scandal with Dianna Russini.
Things have gone from bad to worse for the New England Patriots and Mike Vrabel as the scandal involving the Patriots head coach and former Athletic reporter Dianni Russini got a bit more fuel added to the fire on Thursday. Page Six released more photos of the duo dating back to 2020, when Vrabel was still the head coach of the Tennessee Titans and Russini covered the team for ESPN.
A few hours ahead of those photos being released, Vrabel announced that he would be skipping the final day of the NFL draft to begin counseling, in a release that is framed as a commitment to his family, the team, and himself. It comes just one day after Vrabel spoke publicly for the first time after the scandal, referring to it as a “personal and private matter,” and somewhat indicating that things were moving forward after conversations with the team, staff, and his family.
Now, this latest decision, initially framed as leaning into accountability, doesn’t exactly pass the sniff test following the release of more – and more suspicious – photos. Vrabel confirmed that he will not be with New England on Saturday. He said that he plans to spend the family with his wife, Jen, and two sons outside of Massachusetts this weekend.
Here is the full story from Pats Roundtable writer Ashish Mathur on the latest development ahead of draft night.
Vrabel will remain in contact with the team on Saturday, and executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf and vice president of player personnel Ryan Cowden will lead the draft room. New England holds 11 picks, eight of which are on Day 3. They will kick off their selections with No. 31 in the first round.