Patriots Coach Mike Vrabel Skirts Counseling Question After Dianna Russini Drama

• Mike Vrabel avoided directly addressing his counseling experience during a New England Patriots training camp press conference on Tuesday, Aug. 11
• The Patriots coach rather emphasized individual and team growth as priorities for the upcoming NFL season
• Vrabel previously committed to counseling after a photo scandal involving former NFL reporter Dianna Russini

Mike Vrabel is keeping his focus on the team.

During a training camp press conference on Tuesday, Aug. 11, the New England Patriots head coach, 50, swerved a question about what he learned from offseason counseling, which he said he’d partake in following a photo scandal involving former NFL reporter Dianna Russini earlier this year.

“You said this offseason that you were seeking counseling. I wanted to follow up on that and see what you learned from that counseling, and how did you balance that personal commitment with getting ready for this season?” an ESPN reporter asked Tuesday.

Vrabel did not directly address the counseling, instead giving a broad answer focused on improvement and the team’s goals for the season.

“I think we always look at improvement,” he said. “As we talk about getting ready for the next season, we always look at improvement and ways that we can improve individually and how we can improve as a team. It’s really critical that we continue to do that on and off the field.”

“I believe in that,” Vrabel continued. “I believe in everything that we can do to help this football team, to help our coaches, to help myself and everybody else included. This journey that we are going to go on is going to be completely different than the one we went on last year.”

The Patriots reached the Super Bowl last season and fell to the Seattle Seahawks in February’s big game, 29-13. Vrabel, who is entering his third year at the helm, is focused on the present.

“That’s all of our jobs, is to prepare for it now,” he said at Tuesday’s presser. “So, really focused on our improvement individually and as a team, and that’s something that we can do today. You look at the O-line, and we talk about them and their ability to play together as a unit.”

“There are so many combination blocks that they are involved in, and we have to be better,” he continued of ways the team can better themselves this season. “I think we all have areas that we can improve on, and that includes the coaches.”

Vrabel found himself at the center of a photo scandal in April, when the New York Post published images of him and Russini — who are both married to other people — hugging and holding hands at a luxury hotel in Arizona. Vrabel addressed the matter at a press conference on April 21.

“Thank you for your patience that you’ve shown in a personal and private matter for me and obviously everybody involved. I know that that’s not easy for you and I respect that and I appreciate that,” he said at the time.

On April 22, Vrabel told ESPN in a statement that he would not be with the Patriots on the third day of the 2026 NFL Draft as he instead pledged to be with his family.

“As I said the other day, I promised my family, this organization and this team that I was going to give them the best version of me that I can possibly give them. In order to do so, I have committed to seeking counseling, starting this weekend,” he said at the time.

“This is something that I have given a lot of thought to and is something I would advise a player to do if I was counseling them,” the coach added. “I have always wanted to lead by example, and I believe this is what I have to do to be the best husband, father and coach that I possibly can be.”

Russini, 43, who resigned from The Athletic on April 14, initially said, “The photos don’t represent the group of six people who were hanging out during the day. Like most journalists in the NFL, reporters interact with sources away from stadiums and other venues.”

A league official confirmed to PEOPLE on April 20 that Vrabel is not facing any disciplinary action from the NFL over the matter.

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Since the pictures in April were published, additional photos have surfaced from multiple meetups between Vrabel and Russini through the years, including images of the pair renting a boat together while she was pregnant with her first son.

The Patriots open the season against the Seahawks on Wednesday, Sept. 9.

Read the original article on People