Patriots executive addresses Mike Vrabel NFL Draft decision amid Dianna Russini controversy

Mike Vrabel will be away from the New England Patriots for at least the third day of the 2026 NFL Draft as he participates in counseling amid the controversy involving the head coach and longtime NFL reporter Dianna Russini.

On Thursday night, Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf was asked about what's become a unique and unexpected situation for members of the organization. 

Patriots continue to "support' Mike Vrabel amid Dianna Russini controversy

"That’s a personal thing that Mike’s dealing with and going through, and obviously, we support him," Wolf said, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. "As far as the work is concerned on Saturday, not too worried about that. Just as far as the process that we have in place, the people that we have in place. And it’s going to be different without his presence there, but we feel really good about the people that we have in place to make up for it."

Some previously speculated that Vrabel staying away from the team on Saturday was "a low-key suspension imposed by the Patriots, possibly with a nudge from the league office" after photos surfaced earlier this spring showing Vrabel and Russini spending time together at an Arizona resort in late March. That was before new pictures emerged on Thursday afternoon showing Vrabel and Russini sharing a kiss and "sitting very close to each other" at a New York City bar in March 2020. 

Vrabel and Russini are currently married to other people. Back in 2020, Vrabel was married and was serving as the head coach of the Tennessee Titans. Russini was engaged and covering the Titans for ESPN at the time. 

What Patriots will miss without having Mike Vrabel in their draft room

Wolf was asked what the Patriots will miss without having Vrabel in the room on Saturday. 

"The stability of him as a person, some of the leadership, some of the presence," Wolf responded. "He does a nice job for us with the undrafted players. Obviously, he’s a tremendous recruiter, so that’s maybe something that we’ll be missing. But again, we’re very confident in the people we have with the process. The assistant coaches have done a tremendous job, as have the scouts, preparing for day three. And we’re excited about it."

Perhaps most notably as it pertains to the Patriots' football operations, Vrabel suggested during a Thursday news conference that he could miss more than just the final day of the draft if he feels his "family needs" him. It's unclear what that could mean for springtime practices, mandatory minicamp, training camp, preseason games and the regular season.