Dianna Russini is “absolutely” planning a comeback to sports media, sources tell Front Office Sports.
The former senior NFL insider for The Athletic has been in discussions about several new job opportunities, ranging from pro football insider to opinionist/personality, say sources.
Russini hasn’t decided on her next play. But with the kickoff of the new pro football season only six days away, the former ESPN reporter is expected to make her move sooner rather than later.
The New York Times–owned Athletic’s decision to publicly release the long-awaited findings of its internal investigation that largely cleared Russini of biased Mike Vrabel coverage could help pave the way for her return, say sources.
Russini and Patriots coach Mike Vrabel have been in the headlines since April 7, when the New York Post’s Page Six published explosive photos of the duo holding hands, embracing, and lounging in a hot tub at an expensive resort in Sedona, Arizona. Russini resigned from The Athletic on April 14.
On Thursday, The Athletic’s nearly five-month-old probe found her personal relationship with Vrabel was in “clear violation” of company standards and should have been disclosed. “Specifically, when it comes to The Athletic’s standards, Russini was noncompliant,” it said.
But after reviewing Russini’s journalism output, The Athletic also found “scant evidence” their relationship impacted her, or the site’s, reporting on Vrabel and two teams he coached: the Patriots and Titans.
The internal team reviewed 903 stories and 77 videos published on The Athletic website and app that carried Russini’s byline, co-byline, or contributor line. They also reviewed 204 episodes of her Scoop City podcast and 25 off-platform appearances/interviews. Plus, they interviewed 14 staffers who worked with her—comparing 75 stories by The Athletic involving Vrabel and his teams with those at competing publications. The result?
“The review found that the vast majority of Dianna’s stories were unrelated to Vrabel, and most of these that did mention him did not raise concerns,” wrote Steve Ginsberg, The Athletic’s executive editor. “We have, however, added four editor’s notes to four stories—one written and three videos—that did not meet our standards.”
The Athletic stated it did not investigate Russini’s personal conduct because she’s no longer an employee. But the site’s own story noted Thursday: “While the full nature of the Russini-Vrabel relationship is still unknown, the vast majority of Russini’s work for The Athletic had nothing to do with Vrabel, the report said. Of the 903 pieces, around 5 percent were in some way about Vrabel or his teams. Of the around 46 pieces that mentioned Vrabel or his teams, nearly a third were transactional moves about trades or hires. None of them were scoops, meaning The Athletic did not report the stories exclusively.”
Still, The Athletic didn’t give Russini a pass either. The investigation questioned some of her work—and especially how she handled herself when the Post confronted her with the embarrassing photos.
Mike Semel, The Athletic editorial director for standards and quality who led the investigation, wrote that there were several instances of Russini “writing glowingly of Vrabel that in hindsight are awkward or even uncomfortable.” One referred to her gushing over the Patriots coach as “New England’s hero.” Semel also blamed Russini for waiting two days to tell her managers about the Post confronting her—then telling them “a story to explain the photos that did not align with facts, raising issues of trust.”
Still, Semel seemed to give Russini’s actual work a thumbs-up. “Most of what Russini wrote about Vrabel or the Patriots was transactional and newsy. In addition, I’ve not found a clear link to conclude that Russini used her platform to help promote Vrabel or help his teams during her time at The Athletic.”
The 43-year-old Russini joined The Athletic as its star NFL reporter in August 2023. Previously, she served eight years at ESPN, rising quickly to become one of sports media giant’s top NFL insiders, along with the likes of Adam Schefter, Jeff Darlington, Josina Anderson, Dan Graziano, and the late Chris Mortensen.
The lead candidate to hire Russini, I’m hearing, is Dave Portnoy’s Barstool Sports. She’s friends with the company’s two biggest on-air talents: Pardon My Take hosts Dan “Big Cat” Katz and PFT Commenter. She appeared frequently on their pod. The Jersey native has the kind of funny, entertaining personality that meshes with Barstool’s irreverent approach.
Portnoy himself said it was a “no-brainer” for Barstool to hire Russini in an interview. Both Russini and Vrabel are married. Even if the two did have an affair, it wouldn’t disqualify her, Portnoy told Us Weekly.
“That’s not like a capital offense that should end somebody’s professional career,” he said.
Fox Sports Radio host Jon “Stugotz” Weiner has also extended an open invite for his friend to join his show. “I am not a mouthpiece for Dianna Russini. I am simply saying, it’s her story to tell, it’s not my story, and I am simply going to support my friend,” said Weiner on his show in May. “I did say if The Athletic fired her, I would hire her. They didn’t fire her. She stepped down from The Athletic, and the offer holds forever. If Dianna Russini decides one day, three months from now, a year from now, two years from now, that she wants to get back into this game, she has a place right here.”
Back in April, The Athletic initially responded with a ringing defense of Russini, while Vrabel dubbed the story “laughable.” But FOS reported on April 10 that the website was launching an internal investigation. One week after Page Six published the pictures, Russini resigned from The Athletic.
In a letter to executive editor Ginsberg, which she also posted to X/Twitter, Russini cited the crazy “media frenzy” surrounding her and Vrabel as one reason for her resignation.
She also said she stands “behind every story I have ever published” and noted that her contract with the outlet was set to expire this summer.
“Rather than allowing this to continue, I have decided to step aside now – before my current contract expires on June 30,” wrote Russini. “I do so not because I accept the narrative that has been constructed around this episode, but because I refused to lend it further oxygen or to let it define me or my career.”
