The New England Patriots are no strangers to scandal, with Mike Vrabel’s alleged affair far from their first rodeo.
Vrabel is at the center of fierce controversy after he was pictured fraternizing with sports reporter Dianna Russini at an adults-only resort in Sedona, Arizona, last month – leading to accusations that they were having an affair.
The pair, who are both married with children, initially denied those allegations and instead claimed they were at the retreat with a larger group. Yet Vrabel has since expressed regret over his actions and agreed to begin counseling in order to become a ‘better person.’
Despite the scandal, the Patriots remain supportive of their embattled head coach and his decision to seek professional help.
‘Mike has been open with us about his commitment to being the best version of himself for his family, this team and our fans, and we respect the steps he is taking to follow through on that commitment,’ a team statement read.
Owner Robert Kraft’s unparalleled experience in dealing with crises will undoubtedly help both Vrabel and New England navigate through the chaos.
Mike Vrabel’s alleged affair with Dianna Russini is one of many New England Patriots scandals
Kraft has already overcome a host of scandals during his 32-year stint as Patriots owner, some of which involved him directly. Amid the outrage over Vrabel, the Daily Mail has taken a look back at some of the worst.
Spygate
One of the earliest scandals to engulf Kraft’s Patriots was the infamous 2007 ‘Spygate’ saga, when Bill Belichick’s team was caught filming New York Jets coaches’ hand signals from an unauthorized location during a game.
The iconic head coach claimed at the time he was unaware it was illegal to tape the signals of an opposing team during the game.
However, the issue was not the taping of signals itself, but the fact that it was done in a place that wasn’t allowed.
Belichick believed that if footage collected wasn’t used during the game, that the action of collecting said video was legal. He was also adamant that he never used video to gain an advantage while a game was underway, something NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell agreed with.
Regardless, the NFL still slapped New England with a $250,000 fine and docked them a future first-round pick, while Belichick also received a $500,000 fine of his own.
‘Yeah, again, that’s all in the past,’ he said when asked about the ‘difficult subject’ of Apple TV’s 2024 series, The Dynasty: New England Patriots.
‘I’ve made my comments on that. I don’t have anything to add.’
One of the earliest scandals to engulf owner Robert Kraft’s Patriots was the infamous 2007 ‘Spygate’ saga under head coach Bill Belichick
Deflategate
Eight years later, Belichick’s Patriots became embroiled in a similar controversy involving legendary quarterback Tom Brady.
Brady, who won six Super Bowls in New England, was suspended for the first four games of the 2016 campaign after being accused of ordering the deliberate deflation of footballs used in their win over the Indianapolis Colts in the 2015 AFC Championship game.
‘Deflategate’ also brought a $1 million fine for the Patriots, who were docked a first and fourth-round draft pick in the process.
After an interception by the Colts, the team notified NFL Gameday Operations that there might be an issue with the inflation level of the Patriots’ footballs.
Officials inspecting the footballs found that 11 of the 12 were two pounds-per-square-inch (PSI) below the minimum amount of 12.5 PSI. Other reports said that only one ball was 2PSI underweight.
This matter was corrected – the balls were reinflated at halftime to correct levels – and the Patriots went on to score 28 unanswered points in the second half to win 45-7.
Brady and Belichick denied any wrongdoing both before and after a league investigation found that it was only ‘more probable than not’ that the team had intentionally deflated the balls. Yet that didn’t save the quarterback from a suspension, nor the Patriots from a hefty fine and the loss of crucial draft picks.
Eight years later, Belichick and Tom Brady were involved in ‘Deflategate’ following accusations that they intentionally deflated footballs
Brady, who won six Super Bowls in New England, was banned for the first four games of 2016
Brady appealed the suspension, which was vacated by a US District Court. An appeal of that decision was then overturned again by a US Court of Appeals – which forced him to serve the suspension in the first four games of the 2016 season.
He and the Patriots eventually got the last laugh after completing the greatest single-game comeback in NFL history to win a fifth Super Bowl title when he returned.
Fans were naturally split on Deflategate depending on their allegiance, with the New England faithful accusing Goodell of trying to derail Brady and the Patriots dynasty.
Meanwhile, Patriots haters felt as though the most dominant team of the 21st century was once again guilty of cheating (a follow-up to Spygate 2007).
Aaron Hernandez
Tight end Aaron Hernandez was a star in New England until his unthinkable actions brought it all to a screeching end – and made him the most disgraced Patriots player of all time.
Hernandez won the 2008 National Championship with the University of Florida before he was picked by the Patriots in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft.
Alongside Rob Gronkowski, he formed one of the most dominant tight-end duos in the history of the league, with the pair helping New England make it to Super Bowl XLVI.
But in the 2013 offseason, Hernandez was arrested and charged with the murder of semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd. He was released by the Patriots immediately.
Tight end Aaron Hernandez is undoubtedly the most disgraced Patriots player of all time
Hernandez died by suicide in prison in 2017 after being handed a life sentence for murder
In the midst of his trial for Lloyd’s murder, Hernandez was also indicted for the double homicide of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado in 2012.
While he was acquitted of the double homicide in 2017, Hernandez was found guilty of Lloyd’s murder in 2015 and sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Days after the acquittal of the double-homicide, the former Patriots star was found dead in his cell. His death was ruled a suicide.
Hernandez’s brain was released to researchers at Boston University, who concluded that he was suffering from stage 3 chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) – the degenerative brain disease caused by repeated blows to the head.
Antonio Brown rape allegations
Back in 2019, Antonio Brown agreed to a one-year contract with the Patriots. It was the same day he was released by the Oakland Raiders in disgrace after a number of unexcused absences and an altercation with general manager Mike Mayock.
Yet upon arrival in New England the troubled wide receiver found himself at the center of a much more serious controversy: He was accused of rape and sexual assault.
Brown’s former personal trainer, Britney Taylor, accused the NFL star of raping and sexually assaulting her over three incidents in 2017 and 2018. Another woman also claimed he sexually harassed her in 2017 while she painted a mural in his Pennsylvania home, and she later revealed menacing text messages he sent in an apparent attempt to silence her.
Taylor’s attorney met prosecutors and police, who explained that the statute of limitations had expired on the alleged 2017 sexual assault in Pennsylvania.
Brown, who countersued Taylor for defamation in 2019, denied all of the accusations against him and, according to an ESPN report, refused to sign a $2 million settlement agreement. He was a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers at the time of the alleged assault.
Antonio Brown only played one game for the Patriots after being accused of rape and sexual assault following his signing with the team in 2019
Despite never having criminal charges filed against him, he was released by the Patriots after only one game when the second woman came forward.
Brown and Taylor eventually settled their civil dispute for an undisclosed amount, meaning he avoided a trial. No charges were ever filed against him over the second woman that came forward.
After leaving New England, he went on to win the Super Bowl alongside Tom Brady in Tampa Bay.
Orchids of Asia
Kraft already had plenty of experience in crisis management by the time he was the subject of a shocking prostitution scandal in 2019.
The now 84-year-old billionaire was caught up in a prostitution sting that year after he and others were charged in a multi-county investigation of massage parlors that included the secret installation of video cameras in the spas’ lobbies and rooms.
Police said that the recordings showed Kraft and other men engaging in sex acts with women and paying them at the Orchids of Asia massage parlor in Jupiter, Florida.
Kraft visited the Orchids of Asia day spa twice in a 24-hour span in January and was seen on surveillance video paying cash ‘at the front desk to an Asian female,’ police records claimed.
However, he pleaded not guilty and the charges were later dropped after a court ruled the surveillance videos were inadmissible due to privacy violations and unlawful police tactics.
Billionaire New England owner Kraft was caught up in a prostitution sting in 2019
Police said the recordings showed Kraft and other men engaging in sex acts with women and paying them at the Orchids of Asia massage parlor in Jupiter, Florida
‘I am truly sorry,’ Kraft said in a statement. ‘I know I have hurt and disappointed my family, my close friends, my co-workers, our fans and many others who rightfully hold me to a higher standard.
‘Throughout my life, I have always tried to do the right thing. The last thing I would ever want to do is disrespect another human being. I have extraordinary respect for women.’
Bengals sideline footage
Over a decade on from Spygate, the Patriots were accused of ‘inappropriately filming’ the Cincinnati Bengals sideline during a 2019 game.
The filming occurred as the Bengals faced the Browns in Cleveland in early December, one week before they hosted New England and lost 34-13.
Belichick and the Patriots denied cheating to gain an advantage, instead claiming a three-person crew for a web series titled Do Your Job were filming from the press box as part of a feature on the scouting department. The filming took place ‘without specific knowledge of the rules,’ a team statement alleged.
The statement also said that while they were granted credentials for the crew from the Browns, ‘our failure to inform the Bengals and the league was an unintended oversight.’
Belichick’s Patriots were accused of ‘inappropriately filming’ the Cincinnati Bengals sideline during a 2019 game
When confronted, the team said the crew ‘immediately turned over all footage to the league and cooperated fully.’
‘Since [Spygate] happened, I’d say we’ve tried to keep a good distance behind the line and not maybe take it as far as we would might have in the past. But it’s never really fundamentally changed there,’ Belichick said on a conference call with reporters.
Despite their protests, the Patriots were fined $1.1 million by the NFL and stripped of a third-round pick in the 2021 Draft.
The team’s production crew were also not allowed to shoot any games in the 2020 season.
Stefon Diggs
On the very same month that Vrabel was pictured with Russini in Arizona, the Patriots put another scandal to bed by telling controversial wide receiver Stefon Diggs that they are releasing him.
Diggs had a resurgent 2025 season as Vrabel’s team made it to the Super Bowl, but they were emphatically beaten by the Seattle Seahawks.
His release came shortly after his high-profile split with rapper Cardi B and a court case after football’s showpiece game, where he pleaded not guilty to felony strangulation and other criminal charges stemming from an alleged dispute with his personal chef.
Stefon Diggs was released by the Patriots last month after being accused of assaulting his chef
Diggs has pleaded not guilty to felony strangulation and other criminal charges stemming from an alleged dispute with his personal chef
The 32-year-old was in court in February just five days after losing the Super Bowl over allegations that he assaulted his chef, who told officers it came during an argument about money he allegedly owed her for work.
During the December 2 encounter at his home, she said, he ‘smacked her across the face’ and then ‘tried to choke her using the crook of his elbow around her neck,’ leaving her feeling short of breath.
She told officers she had trouble breathing and felt she could have blacked out.
Diggs’s attorney has said he ‘categorically denies these allegations,’ calling them unsubstantiated and motivated by a financial dispute. He is charged with one count of felony strangulation or suffocation and one count of misdemeanor assault and battery.
