Mike Vrabel makes statement on leaked photos with Dianna Russini

Mike Vrabel makes statement on leaked photos with Dianna Russini

New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel addressed reporters for the first time since the New York Post published photos of Vrabel and NFL reporter Dianna Russini together at a resort in Arizona.

Vrabel, who coached the Tennessee Titans from 2018-23, called the situation a "personal and private matter" at an April 21 press conference in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

"It was important to me to have a conversation with the players, which I did yesterday very candidly, as we began our offseason program, which everyone is excited to be a part of," Vrabel said. "I’ve had some difficult conversations with people that I care about — my family, the organization, the coaches, the players. Those have been positive and productive.

"We believe in order to be successful on and off the field, you have to make good decisions. That includes me, that starts with me. We never want our actions to negatively affect the team, we never want to be the cause of distraction. The comments and questions that I’ve answered for the team and with the team, we’ll keep those private and to ourselves."

Vrabel never mentioned Russini by name during his statement.

Vrabel and Russini were photographed together at the Ambiente, an adult-only hotel in Sedona, Arizona. The photos showed the two, who are married to other people, hugging and holding hands on the hotel's roof, and also showed them in bathing suits by the pool.