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Mike Vrabel and AJ Brown won Tuesday because the long-rumored trade that reunited them was finally completed. Brown was open about his recent displeasure with the Philadelphia Eagles, while Vrabel spoke lightly and smartly about how his Super Bowl team got better.
It was a nice victory lap for everyone.
Except for Dianna Russini.
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel celebrates after the AFC Championship game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field At Mile High in Denver, Colo., on Jan. 25, 2026. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
MIKE VRABEL BREAKS HIS SILENCE ON DIANNA RUSSINI CONTROVERSY
Yes, it’s as much about her as Vrabel and Brown. Those three names will be linked for a long time in NFL circles based on what happened as far back as September 2025, and then certainly through this offseason that was about, well, the relationship between the coach and the reporter.
If you are not up to that ratio, you have homework. And you’ll probably catch it easily, because the reference material is everywhere – the photos of Russini and Vrabel together, the denial of anything untoward between two married people, the breakdown of the professional friendship narrative and everything after.
So to the uninitiated, you are excused. Now go read the opening chapters of the soap opera. Because this could be the end of the saga, barring a bigger surprise.
And let me cut to that end:
Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver AJ Brown takes the field during an NFL training camp in Philadelphia on July 29, 2025. (Matt Rourke/AP Photo)
Brown wins. He’s actually completely unscathed and happy as a clam with a new team he grew up loving.
Vrabel also wins. Yes, he took some lumps, suffered some humiliating moments in front of reporters and had some family conversations he called “very difficult,” but he’s ultimately none the worse for wear.
And then there is Russini. She lost. Big time.
FORMER NFL REPORTER MICHELE TAFOYA WEIGHS IN WHY RUSSINI’S CREDIBILITY IS GONE
It was sad to see Vrabel press because it was Russini who first reported that teams were calling the Eagles about Brown back in September 2025. She first reported that the Eagles were not interested in trading Brown.
Russini called it when she told everyone the Patriots were interested (so were the Los Angeles Rams, by the way). And she was right again when she said earlier this year that Brown would not be traded around the start of the league year in March, but watch out for June.
She was dead-on accurate with practically everything.
Dianna Russini, left, and Mike Vrabel, right, are shown in a split composite photo with Russini holding an ESPN microphone and Vrabel on the Titans sideline wearing a headset. (Images)
But everyone has assumed that all that information came out of her relationship with Vrabel. All that insider work came from other alleged insider work.
Russini’s information was amazing, but how she apparently accomplished it eventually led to her resignation from The Athletic. And tarnishes her professional reputation.
Loss.
MIKE VRABEL LEAVES UNDETERMINED TO SEEK COUNSELING
Rumble? He seemed fine on Tuesday.
The hardest thing he had to do was answer a question about Brown’s obvious displeasure last year in Philly.
“I don’t know what happened,” Vrabel said. “I’m not trying to figure out what happened in Philadelphia. I’m trying to focus on what’s going to happen here and trying to get him used to what we do and how we do it.”
During this press conference, Vrabel congratulated a reporter for winning a marathon. He credited Executive Vice President of Player Personnel Eliot Wolf for making the deal happen. And he took a lot of football questions.
Dianna Russini attends the 2026 Fanatics Super Bowl Party at Pier 48 in San Francisco, California on February 7, 2026. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images)
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There was no question that for months he leaked details to Russini about where the Patriots and Eagles negotiations were. Not a question of how his family “counseling” sessions are going or if his marriage is sure to survive.
There was nothing unpleasant because it seems that the local media lost interest or their curiosity on a day when the story that Russini had been beating on them for months was revealed to them.
And the thing is, if Vrabel didn’t have to sweat this occasion, he’s probably ready. He probably won’t be asked hard questions about the whole affair (excuse the pun) again unless more facts emerge that raise the question from the grave.
So yes, Mike Vrabel has survived. He has won.
FOLLOW ARMANDO SALGUERO ON X: @ARMANDOSALGUERO
