Dianna Russini and her husband were out in Manhattan on Saturday without a care in the world, living it up with a big group of friends at a bar next to Madison Square Garden in New York before Bruce Springsteen’s latest show in the city.
Last month, bombshell pictures emerged of Russini holding hands with New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel at an adults-only resort in Arizona, igniting a scandal that led to her resigning from her job as an NFL reporter at The Athletic.
But on Saturday, Russini and her husband Kevin Goldschmidt, a Shake Shack executive, were joined by a large group of around 10-15 friends at the Bourbon and Branch Bar – a popular spot for fans to gather before shows at MSG.
A witness told Daily Mail that Russini and Goldschmidt both looked in good spirits and that their group was very excitable as they shared drinks and food as people gathered before the show. There was no suggestion that the couple were struggling after being involved in a scandal that is still sending shockwaves across the NFL.
‘They were having a great time,’ the witness said. ‘They were having a blast with a big group of friends. Lots of food and drinks ordered to their table and they were very carefree given everything that has gone on.
‘Russini and her husband were sat opposite each other. That bar gets busy before shows but she didn’t seem to care if anyone might have recognized her.’
Dianna Russini and her husband were spotted out with friends in New York on Saturday
In early April, pictures emerged of Russini holding hands with Patriots coach Mike Vrabel
Russini, who lives in Springsteen’s home state of New Jersey, vehemently denied having an affair with Vrabel, who is also married, and in her resignation letter to bosses at the New York Times-owned Athletic insisted she would not let her career be defined by the bombshell pictures.
Married father-of-two Vrabel, however, struck a different tone when he finally faced the media ahead of the NFL draft in late April.
‘I take accountability for my actions and the actions that caused a distraction to the people that I care most about – my family, this football team, this organization and our fans,’ he said.
Vrabel later started counseling, missing day three of the draft and admitting he wanted to set a better example as a husband, father and head coach.
Russini, meanwhile, deleted her social media accounts before a slew of other pictures of her and Vrabel slowly began to emerge.
The most damaging appeared to show them getting intimate as far back as March 2020 at a bar in Tribeca, Manhattan – just a few miles from where she was relaxing with friends this Saturday.
Video footage also emerged of them going on a romantic boat trip that allegedly took place just months before she gave birth to her first son.
Russini and Vrabel reportedly hired a vessel for two or three hours in June 2021, when he was still coaching the Tennessee Titans and she was reporting on him for ESPN.
Both of them have denied having an affair but Vrabel has recently started counseling
Russini and husband Kevin Goldschmidt were married in New Jersey in September 2020
A source with knowledge of the rental said Vrabel and Russini were the only people on board, and that claim was supported by a signed company waiver reviewed by TMZ.
Russini went on to give birth to her first of two sons, named Mike, in August 2021. TMZ reported that Russini named him after her brother, Michael Russini, not the now-Patriots coach.
Last weekend, another flirty clip of the pair emerged from a Barstool podcast episode in which Vrabel and Russini were pitted against each other in a Family Feud-style game.
In it, Russini – who appears to be sitting on her bed – is asked: ‘Tell me something a man might do to get a woman in the mood.’
Without hesitation, she replies, ‘Kiss her! This is good advice for you guys.’
Vrabel then jumped in out of nowhere to respond: ‘I’m paying very close attention. I’m so excited.’
Vrabel has been married to his wife, Jen, for over two decades and they have two children
A clip also emerged from a 2021 episode of ESPN’s Get Up was recently unearthed, during which Russini discussed her marriage.
‘I’m married to someone average,’ she said at the time. ‘I don’t post a lot about him. If I was married to someone beautiful, I’d over-post too.’
Her ESPN co-hosts later gave Russini a chance to correct herself, to which she explained: ‘We’re average together.’
But on Saturday night, it seemed the couple were moving on from any problems from the last few weeks with one of the hottest tickets in town to see the final New York show of Springsteen’s sold-out tour.
Vrabel has recently returned to coaching with the Patriots, taking the first steps in building up to the 2026 NFL season. He has just overseen rookie minicamp, while excitement for football’s return ramped up when the schedule dropped this week for the new campaign.
The Patriots start their season with a Super Bowl rematch against the Seattle Seahawks before hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers – who on Saturday night confirmed the return of Aaron Rodgers.
