Dianna Russini has texted people around the NFL that she will announce a new job next week, setting up a return to sports media after months away from The Athletic. What that job is remains unclear, but the timing is now fixed, and that alone makes the next move the story.
People around the industry have heard the destination may be with a gambling or prediction provider, a lane that would fit a reporter with a large audience and a strong NFL profile. Russini resigned from The Athletic in April, a week after The New York Post published photos of her and Mike Vrabel at a resort in Arizona, and the fallout has hovered over her since.
The background to her exit is more than a tabloid footnote. Other outlets later released additional photos of Russini and Vrabel together dating back seven years, while TMZ reportedly obtained documents showing they rented a private boat in Putnam County, Tennessee, in June 2021. At that time, Russini was seven months pregnant, and she initially said she was on a “girls trip in Arizona” before meeting Vrabel.
The Athletic later said her relationship with Vrabel was in clear violation of its standards. Mike Semel said, “Russini’s relationship with Vrabel was in clear violation of The Athletic’s standards,” and the company added, “Regardless of whether the relationship was romantic, it was a breach and should have been disclosed.” That matters because Russini is now trying to step back into a business that remembers the reason she left.
Her return will also be judged against the fact that Jemele Hill and Mark Jones still have jobs in sports media. The piece of the story that may decide how her comeback is received is not whether she works again — it is whether the new employer can separate her reporting from the controversy that followed her out of The Athletic. She is expected to say where she is going next week, but the market is still waiting to learn exactly what role she will fill.
