The 2026-27 NFL preseason is underway and veteran reporter Dianna Russini is not expected to be covering the league when teams take the field for real in September — but that may soon change.
The Athletic columnist Mike Silver called Russini, 43, a “really good friend of mine” during a Tuesday, August 25, appearance on the “Tom Tolbert Show,” where he indicated Russini would not be sidelined for long.
Silver, 60, worked with Russini during her time as The Athletic’s senior NFL insider. She resigned from her post in mid-April amid an internal investigation related to her alleged relationship with New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel.
“[I’m] really, really proud of the journalism we did together and honestly just really bummed that we don’t get to continue it because we worked really well together,” Silver said.
He continued, “And I do think she’s going to be back, probably not as an insider, at least in the short term. But I think she’ll be back in this realm, probably talking about football and other things pretty soon.”
Russini has kept a low profile since Page Six first published photos, reportedly taken in March, of her and Vrabel, 51, together at a resort in Arizona. Both denied anything inappropriate in their relationship, but more photos and videos emerged in the weeks that followed appearing to suggest otherwise.
Vrabel later revealed he was seeking counseling related to the scandal, even missing the final day of the NFL Draft as he said he was prioritizing his family.
Vrabel and his wife, Jen, married in 1999 and share sons Tyler, 26, and Carter, 24. Russini married Kevin Goldschmidt in 2020, and the pair has sons Michael, 5, and Joey, 4.
“I do know her family,” Silver said. “She’s got a great family. And so, you know, a lot of people have had a lot of thoughts about it.”
When Russini resigned from The Athletic, she released a statement saying she stands “behind every story I have ever published.” She added that fans and media had taken to speculation that is “simply unmoored from the facts.”
Speaking to Tolbert, Silver said he wasn’t “getting into” the scandal, but that Russini “is doing a lot better and her family’s doing well.”
Russini and her family were spotted on a Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas cruise in July, where the four seemed to be enjoying their getaway.
“They seemed to be engaged with one another,” a witness told Page Six. “They were very family oriented with their kids. They took the kids to the Splash Pad together and were laughing at the pool.”
The witness added that they saw Russini blow her husband a kiss and that she danced with one of her sons to Katy Perry’s “Firework.”
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