Dianna Russini was paid close to $800,000-a-year by the The Athletic before her career as an NFL insider collapsed following the Mike Vrabel affair scandal.
Russini left her job as an NFL insider at the New York Times-owned Athletic just days after bombshell pictures emerged in early April of her appearing intimate with the head coach of the New England Patriots at an adults-only resort in Arizona. Both are married with children.
An investigation about Russini and the scandal was published by the New York Times on Wednesday, and it detailed Russini’s $800,000 salary. She was one of the highest-paid journalists at the Times Company.
The piece also reveals that, when the scandal first exploded, The Athletic and Russini were in talks over renewing her contract, which was set to expire at the end of June.
Russini has vehemently denied all suggestions of an affair with Vrabel, insisting in a statement announcing her resignation that she stands by every story she has published.
The Patriots coach denied it too, initially, alongside Russini’s claim that they were at the resort with friends. But subsequently, Vrabel said he had started counseling in order ‘to be the best husband, father and coach that I possibly can be’.
Dianna Russini was paid an eye-watering $800,000-a-year by The Athletic before she quit
Russini left her job as an NFL reporter after intimate pictures emerged of her and Mike Vrabel
He even missed the third day of the NFL Draft with the Patriots as a result of his move.
The New York Times piece also discloses how bosses at The Athletic were unhappy that Russini shared on a podcast how she used her relationship with an NFL head coach to get out of a driving ticket.
Russini revealed on ‘Stugotz and Company’ that she was pulled over in January for texting while driving with her two young sons.
But she managed to prevent a ticket by getting the head coach of the police officer’s favorite team to speak with him on FaceTime. It was not Vrabel.
Danielle Rhoades Ha, a Times Company spokeswoman, called it ‘unacceptable conduct’, while it later emerged that Russini never asked or received permission to go on that podcast, which was required.
The piece also reveals that, a day after the intimate photos were taken in Sedona, Russini and Vrabel spent time together at the NFL’s annual meeting in Phoenix.
It’s claimed Russini was bringing drinks to and from a small group of people that included Vrabel and other NFL coaches on the patio of the Arizona Biltmore hotel, while she would ‘periodically stop to sit on the arm of the sofa next to where Vrabel sat’.
Meanwhile, it emerged earlier this month that unrest is growing at the New York Times with an investigation into Russini’s relationship with Vrabel still ‘weeks away’ from being published.
Steven Ginsberg, Russini’s boss at The Athletic, initially launched a defiant defense of her, before she was put on leave and ultimately resigned after Ginsberg said ‘additional information emerged’.
He said an investigation would be launched but now, over two months on, Athletic staffers are said to be frustrated that the probe is dragging, as per Page Six.
Vrabel and Russini were pictured appearing intimate at a resort in Arizona back in April
Russini then resigned from The Athletic, who have launched an investigation into the scandal
Ginsberg was quoted as telling staff last week: ‘It’s going to take a few more weeks.
‘There’s just a lot to go through, and we obviously want to take our time and be careful doing that.
‘We will update everybody when we get to the end of that. We’ve also said that if we find anything that needs to be corrected, we will correct it along the way.’
News of the investigation still being weeks away from a conclusion won’t be ideal for Vrabel, either, as he builds up to the 2026 campaign starting September.
‘I promised my family, this organization and this team that I was going to give them the best version of me that I can possibly give them. In order to do so, I have committed to seeking counseling,’ Vrabel said in the aftermath of the scandal.
‘This is something that I have given a lot of thought to and is something I would advise a player to do if I was counseling them.
‘This is not an easy thing for me to admit, but it is one that I know will make me a better person. I appreciate the support that everyone has given me and promise a stronger resolve as a result.’
Vrabel has since done his best to get back to business and focus on football with the Patriots, who he led to the Super Bowl last season before losing to Seattle Seahawks.
Russini and husband Kevin Goldschmidt were married in New Jersey in September 2020
Vrabel has been married to his wife, Jen, for over two decades and they have two children
Vrabel’s attempts at accountability came in stark contrast to his initial reaction to the Post’s photos, which he described as ‘laughable’ when reached for comment by Page Six. He then remained silent on the issue until just before the NFL Draft.
Asked about his initial ‘laughable’ comment, Vrabel admitted in April: ‘I think that was, always an attempt to protect your family and I would never be dismissive.’
Mike and Jen Vrabel were married in 1999 after meeting at Ohio State, where she studied to become a dental hygienist.
Russini has since been seen in public with her husband. They were spotted outside their New Jersey home together and again at a bar in central Manhattan near Madison Square Garden, before a Bruce Springsteen concert.
