Just when you thought she was done ruining her reputation…
It’s hard to imagine anyone’s career crashing down faster than now-former NFL reporter for The Athletic, Dianna Russini.
Russini, of course, resigned from her position back in April after photos leaked showing the reporter getting close at an adults only resort with New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel. While both Russini and Vrabel initially denied that the photos showed anything romantic, claiming that she was on a “girls trip,” more photos later surfaced showing the two kissing at a bar as far back as 2020, and even renting a private boat together back in 2021 while Russini was pregnant.
Since the scandal broke, there have been several unflattering clips of Russini that have resurfaced, including one of her making a cringey joke about sex with her husband in front of Vrabel.
Well another resurfaced story quickly went viral last week thanks to a New York Times article on the disgraced reporter which opened with a story Russini told on a podcast back in February.
During an appearance on Stugotz & Company, the reporter claimed that she had FaceTimed an NFL coach during a traffic stop to get out of a ticket.
As Russini recalled, the incident happened right after the Buffalo Bills announced they were parting ways with their head coach Sean McDermott:
“The police officer pulls up and I said, ‘Listen, Sean McDermott just got fired. I am breaking – I am in the middle of this right now. I know you don’t care as a police officer, but I feel like I need to let you know this.’
And he said, ‘Well, I’m not a Bills fan.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, you’re Jets, so this is good news for you, right?’ He said, ‘No.’ And so he names the team. I go, ‘Oh, I love that team.’ I go, ‘Do you want to talk to the coach? You should talk to the coach.’
I FaceTime the head coach. Head coach is in his office. He’s like, ‘What’s up?’ I go, ‘I just got pulled over and I just wanted you to meet my friend, Officer Joe.’ And the head coach played all into it and he’s like, ‘How you doing?’ He’s like, ‘You should let her go. She’s a good citizen.’ The officer’s just like, ‘What is happening right now?’
Who does that? I was desperate. I don’t want to get a ticket. My husband’s going to kill me. I’m texting and driving, and I shouldn’t be doing that.”
But as it turns out, she didn’t do that.
After the story went viral, the police chief in Ridgewood, New Jersey issued a statement denying that his officer gave Russini special treatment because she FaceTimed his favorite NFL coach. According to Chief Forest Ross Lyons:
“On January 19, 2026, at 9:40 am, a Ridgewood police officer conducted a motor vehicle stop on Godwin Avenue involving Ms. Dianna Russini for the use of a handheld cell phone while driving.
After following department protocol during the stop, and reviewing Ms. Russini’s driving history, the officer exercised his professional discretion and issued a verbal warning to Ms. Russini.
The use of officer discretion in determining whether to issue a warning or a citation is consistent with Ridgewood Police Department policy and longstanding practice. Police officers are encouraged to use their judgment and, when appropriate, provide motorists with warnings as part of the Department’s commitment to fair, impartial and community-oriented policing.”
And the body cam footage of the traffic stop confirms that Russini did indeed embellish her story.
In the video, the officer pulls over Russini for being on her phone while driving, and she explains that she was tweeting about McDermott being fired. The officer explains that Russini had been on her phone for “a while,” and Russini then begins name dropping NFL coaches:
“You know who I was on the phone with? Brian Daboll, the coach of the Giants. Are you a fan of the Giants or Jets?”
The officer explains that he’s a Minnesota Vikings fan “unfortunately,” and Russini then shows the officer her text messages with Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell – while also giving her opinion on their roster:
“Your quarterback sucks though.”
Didn’t have JJ McCarthy catching a stray in all this…
Well anyway, the officer returns to his car and runs her information, ultimately deciding to let her go with a warning – and without a FaceTime to the Minnesota Vikings head coach.
https://x.com/thecentersquare/status/2071749212472254892
I mean, who would have thought that she would lie about something like this? She’s always been so honest and credible…
Man, you’ve almost gotta feel for Russini the way her reputation has crumbled over the past few months.
