Drake Maye breaks silence on Mike Vrabel amid controversy

It was only a matter of time before Drake Maye commented on New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel, amid the ongoing fallout from the situation involving Dianna Russini, a former reporter at The Athletic.

Pictures of Vrabel and Russini, who are both married, surfaced online and appeared to show the two holding hands and embracing. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell chalked it up to a "personal matter" and preferred to leave it at that. However, Russini ultimately resigned from The Athletic in light of the controversy.

Patriots' team captains Hunter Henry and Robert Spillane touched on the subject on Tuesday. On Wednesday, it was Maye's turn.

"We're here for coach. We love coach, what he does for us, what he's done for us this past year—you can't speak into words," said Maye. "Just thankful he's our head coach. I know he's dealing with some stuff off the field and out of the coaching world, we're here for him. And I know he's going to come back."

Vrabel skipped Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft to seek counseling. However, he was reportedly back in the Patriots' building on Monday.

The team hopes to leave the controversy in the rearview as they prepare for a second season with Vrabel at the helm. They have made significant strides in the offseason building a better roster and putting themselves in position to potentially compete for another Super Bowl this season.