New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel addressed reporters for the first time since the New York Post published photos of Vrabel and NFL reporter Dianna Russini together at a resort in Arizona.
Vrabel, who coached the Tennessee Titans from 2018-23, called the situation a "personal and private matter" at an April 21 press conference in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
"It was important to me to have a conversation with the players, which I did yesterday very candidly, as we began our offseason program, which everyone is excited to be a part of," Vrabel said. "I’ve had some difficult conversations with people that I care about — my family, the organization, the coaches, the players. Those have been positive and productive.
"We believe in order to be successful on and off the field, you have to make good decisions. That includes me, that starts with me. We never want our actions to negatively affect the team, we never want to be the cause of distraction. The comments and questions that I’ve answered for the team and with the team, we’ll keep those private and to ourselves."
Vrabel never mentioned Russini by name during his statement.
Vrabel and Russini were photographed together at the Ambiente, an adult-only hotel in Sedona, Arizona. The photos showed the two, who are married to other people, hugging and holding hands on the hotel's roof, and also showed them in bathing suits by the pool.
Both Vrabel and Russini attempted to downplay the photos after they were published by Page Six on April 7. In a statement to the Post, Vrabel said the photos showed a "completely innocent interaction" and described the suggestion of an affair between them as "laughable." Russini, who worked for The Athletic, resigned from her position on April 14.
An NFL spokesman told USA Today Sports on April 20 that Vrabel is not being investigated for any violation of the league's personal conduct policy.
Vrabel went 54-45 in six seasons with the Titans, coaching them to two AFC South division championships and three playoff appearances, before being fired in 2024. In his first season with the Patriots, he was named NFL Coach of the Year and led the team to Super Bowl 60, where they lost to the Seattle Seahawks.
GENTRY ESTES: Mike Vrabel-Dianna Russini scandal black eye for NFL's 'insider' media culture
Jacob Shames can be reached by email at jshames@gannett.com and on X/Twitter @Jacob_Shames.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Mike Vrabel statement on Dianna Russini photos