Report: Patriots tried to stop New York Post from publishing the Mike Vrabel-Dianna Russini photos

Nearly two weeks after the New York Post first published photos of Patriots coach Mike Vrabel and former Athletic reporter Dianna Russini at an adults-only resort in Sedona, Arizona, the story finds new ways to remain relevant.

The latest twist comes from InTouch, in an article that has been repurposed and amplified by Yahoo! Sports.

Per the report, which was posted late Sunday night, the Patriots tried to stop the Post from publishing the story.

"The Post gave Vrabel a longer time to respond than what is considered industry norms, and [owner Robert] Kraft took advantage of that extended timeframe to put pressure on the reporter and the newspaper," the story explains. "A notorious crisis strategist made the call but was unsuccessful in neutering the story."

It's the second reference to a crisis manager in recent days. Friday's in-depth item from by Ben Strauss of ESPN included a report that Russini promptly contacted a "crisis communications expert" after becoming aware of the situation.

Strauss also reported that "Russini, Vrabel and executives from The Athletic, which is owned by the New York Times, scrambled to respond" to the Post report, and that the Post "was open to changing the tone of the story or possibly not running it if Russini and Vrabel could provide compelling evidence to back up their statements that they had each been on a trip with friends."

The reporting from Strauss makes the item from InTouch more plausible. There apparently (or at least reportedly) was an effort to work the Post, by someone. Given the manner in which the story sprouted legs and kept on running, it makes sense that those involved in the situation would try to take as much steam as possible out of it at the outset.