Mike Vrabel is hoping that the Dianna Russini scandal is behind him. He's not in control of that, though.
The New England Patriots head coach was first spotted in some private photographs with the NFL insider earlier this spring. Vrabel and Russini were spotted together at an adults-only resort in Arizona, ahead of the NFL's league meetings. Both Vrabel and Russini initially denied any wrongdoing.
"These photos show a completely innocent interaction and any suggestion otherwise is laughable," Vrabel told the New York Post, which published the initial photos. "This doesn’t deserve any further response."
Russini denied any wrongdoing, as well.
Russini/IG
However, in the weeks and months that have followed, Vrabel has publicly apologized for his behavior and Russini has resigned from her position at The Athletic. More photos and videos have come out of their private interactions over the years, as well.
One controversy expert believes that Vrabel's handling of the scandal has been a "disaster."
Expert speaks out on Vrabel's handling of controversy
Molly McPherson, a crisis communications and strategy expert with more than 25 years of experience, spoke to USA TODAY.
“Vrabel is running, in my opinion, a staged rehabilitation, albeit somewhat clumsily,” McPherson told USA TODAY Sports. "Everything he’s doing is sequenced to move from that initial denial in the beginning to where we are now.”
However, McPherson believes that Vrabel's initial denial and overall handling has been a "disaster."
"He cannot get from A to Z without taking accountability," McPherson said. "This will continue to follow him.
"Or," McPherson said, "he could just own up to what happened."
Vrabel, meanwhile, has not full owned up to whatever happened. Rather, he's made general apologies.
"I've had some difficult conversations with people I care about about − with my family, the organization, the coaches, the players," Vrabel said before the NFL Draft.
"Those have been positive and productive. We believe in order to be successful on and off the field, you have to make good decisions. That includes me. That starts with me. We never want our actions to negatively affect the team. You never want to be the cause of a distraction.
"What I can promise you is that my family, this organization, the team, the staff, the coaches, everybody − our fans, most importantly − will get the best version of me going forward."
