Mike Vrabel Talked for Three Minutes. He Never Said Dianna Russini's Name

He stood at the Patriots podium in Foxborough, made a statement, thanked reporters for their patience, and said he had "difficult conversations" with people he cares about. He said those conversations were "positive and productive. " He said good decisions matter on and off the field.

He said that it starts with him. He pivoted to the NFL Draft. Dianna Russini's name did not come up once.

Not in the statement. Not in the questions. Not in three minutes of accounting for a situation that helped end her job.

She exists in Vrabel's version of this story as "everybody involved. " That is the word he chose, involved, for the woman who resigned from The Athletic, who spent weeks described as the subject of an internal investigation, who watched her reputation become a national sports media story. She is involved.