On April 11, in the aftermath of the Dianna Russini-Mike Vrabel scandal, The Athletic began investigating Russini’s reporting. Folks, that was well before the start of the 2026 NFL Draft, and we’re now in late July. What’s taking so long?
While it’s not an easy thing to investigate, especially considering Russini resigned in April, some still think The Athletic is dragging its feet. Now, one NFL podcaster is speculating on the reasons for the delay.
Did The Athletic Find Something Big?
Since they haven’t revealed anything, it’s certainly possible that The Athletic is still piecing together this complicated puzzle. But others are starting to share other theories.
That includes NFL podcaster Tony Farmer, who is a co-host of the “Last Men Standing” podcast. Farmer has been one of the loudest media voices on the Russini-Vrabel scandal since Page Six first published the photos of the pair. Now, he’s wondering if The Athletic’s investigation dug up some dirt that may be “too big” to unveil.
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“Mark Schlereth said he thinks the entire league is nervous, then LaVar Arrington said what The Athletic finds may be too big to release,” Farmer wrote. “Then The Athletic’s investigation into Dianna Russini’s journalism gets stalled without explanation? Did they find something massive and change course? Did someone ‘kill’ the story? There were reports early on that Robert Kraft ‘tried to kill’ the story. Was he finally successful?”
Mark Schlereth said he thinks the entire league is nervous, then LaVar Arrington said what The Athletic finds may be too big to release…
Then The Athletic’s investigation into Dianna Russini’s journalism gets stalled without explanation?
Did they find something massive and… https://t.co/Y3xt2jyns9
— Tony Farmer (@Tonysmarkettips) July 19, 2026
The Russini saga has been scandalous enough, but could there be even more to unveil? Something that’s even bigger than a married top NFL insider having an alleged affair with a married NFL head coach who just went to the Super Bowl?
I can’t imagine what that might be, but it sure sounds compelling. Hopefully, The Athletic releases its findings in the near future, with nothing “big” scrubbed from the record. That is, unless someone powerful found a way to “kill” the story before additional information is unveiled.
Kraft reportedly tried to kill the Page Six images before they were published, and there has also been speculation that Kraft, Vrabel, and Co. could try to get Russini to sign an NDA to prevent her from telling her side of the story.
It remains to be seen if The Athletic’s findings will be announced or if Farmer might be onto something. The longer the outlet drags its feet, the more it will fuel these kinds of conspiracy theories.
