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Mike Vrabel refuses to apologize to family in press conferences
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel has put on a masterclass in how not to handle a professional PR crisis.
Vrabel has not apologized or uttered the word “sorry” a single time in any of his two press conferences regarding his extramarital affair with former NFL reporter for The Athletic, Dianna Russini.
After ESPN’s Ben Strauss dropped a bombshell article exposing how Vrabel and Russini worked together to craft a statement following the release of their photos at a romantic, adults-only Sedona resort by Page Six of the New York Post — with Vrabel calling it a “completely innocent interaction” and any other insinuation “laughable” — he finally held his first press conference Tuesday.
In the two-and-a-half-minute opening statement that amounted to little more than word salad, Vrabel repeatedly called it a “private and personal matter,” said he spoke with players Monday, and acknowledged having “difficult conversations” with those he cares about most, including his family, but never said “sorry” or “I apologize.”
Vrabel also stated, “In order to be successful on & off the field, you have to make good decisions.” That obviously insinuates he made bad decisions. What were those decisions, coach? What is this whole press conference about? Enough with the vague generalities.
The entire statement, along with the subsequent media questioning, struck me as odd — not because I or anyone else is owed an apology, but because of the lack of clarity and, more importantly, what seems like a lack of genuine remorse.
When asked about telling the New York Post that the implications of adultery with Russini were “laughable,” Vrabel responded, “I appreciate the question. I’m going to focus on our football team…”
That doesn’t sound like a man that wants to accept accountability. That’s a man that wants it swept under the rug, so he can move on.
This is why I believe Vrabel is not actually remorseful that he cheated on his wife. He’s just sorry that he got caught.
He had multiple opportunities to apologize to his wife and children publicly, but he refused.
After that press conference is where things took another wild turn.
Following Vrabel’s vague posturing in his first press conference, The New York Post released more photos of Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini on Thursday. This time, it was of the two kissing at a New York City bar from six years ago. At the time, Vrabel was married, and Russini was about six months away from her wedding.
Vrabel addressed the media hours later. Again, no apologies to his wife or his family.
ADAM SCHEFTER GRILLED OVER RUSSINI-VRABEL ‘SCANDAL’ AND IT GOT UNCOMFORTABLE
He used the same tired “personal and private matter” language, as if this isn’t the biggest story in sports currently. This isn’t just some coach being unfaithful. This is one of the league’s best coaches and one of the league’s most prominent reporters hooking up for at least six years. That’s not just a “private and personal matter.”
This relationship, lasting at least six years, has made the public wonder if there has been tampering throughout the process. The NFL doesn’t seem to think so, though. Roger Goodell has said Vrabel will not be investigated and that this is not a violation of the league’s personal conduct policy, calling it a “personal matter.”
Sure. A “personal matter” with one of the most prominent NFL insiders that has spanned at least six years and multiple teams (Titans and Patriots). But I digress…
Vrabel did state in his second presser, “I take accountability for my actions” as well as “My previous actions don’t meet the standard that I hold myself to,” without explaining what those actions were.
Again, what are we doing here? Why is it so difficult to simply apologize to your wife and children publicly?
Has he apologized in private? I don’t know. All we know is that he is skipping NFL Draft day three to go to counseling.
ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!
Mike Vrabel has done himself, his family, his players, the organization, and the league no favors. While he has proven to be a solid coach, his apparent lack of conviction regarding his morally deplorable actions — which he tried to hide again and again — suggests that he and Russini are cut from the same cloth, willing to do whatever it takes to avoid facing real accountability.
Your family deserves better than your weak PR-style monologues and skipping NFL Draft day three for counseling.
When you say, “I have always wanted to lead by example,” that starts with admitting to and detailing your wrongs. We don’t need to know the intimate details, of course, but if you’re going to address the public, stop with the vague, general statements.
As for me, I’m inclined to believe this isn’t the end of this saga. There may be more incriminating photos. If someone sat on photos for six years, I find it hard to believe there aren’t more pieces of evidence that could ultimately lead to Vrabel stepping away from the Patriots. That’s all speculation, though.
It comes down to this: in his first press conference, Vrabel said, “I don’t want to take away from… the weekend of the [NFL] Draft.” Well, Mike, you have. You’ve become one of the biggest NFL Draft distractions in recent memory. You’ve disrespected your wife and family, and if you don’t want things to get worse, you should stop trying to spin the story or sweep it under the rug.
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Florida man allegedly shot woman in neck, dragged her back inside before hiding in backyard pool
A Florida man is facing attempted murder charges after allegedly shooting a woman in the neck and dragging her back into her home, authorities said.
Officers with the Wildwood Police Department responded around 11:30 p.m. Saturday to reports of an argument followed by a gunshot, according to an arrest report cited by WKMG.
When police arrived, they found a woman with a gunshot wound to the neck lying in a driveway. She was airlifted to a hospital with life-threatening injuries.
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Robert Anthony Morgan, 40, was arrested and charged with attempted felony murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and discharging a firearm in public or on residential property.
Police said Morgan was seen crawling under a partially open garage door before jumping into a backyard pool. Officers pulled him from the water and took him into custody.
The victim’s mother told investigators there was a history of domestic violence between Morgan and the victim. She said she saw him drag the woman back onto the property after the shooting, according to WKMG.
When she asked if he had called for help, Morgan allegedly replied, “She’s fine,” and threatened to shoot her if she contacted police.
Authorities recovered a rifle from the garage floor and found blood in the street leading to the home, WESH reported.
The woman’s four children were inside the home at the time of the incident, according to reports.
Morgan, who has a prior conviction for felony battery, made an initial court appearance Monday and is being held without bond.
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University of Nebraska at Kearney pulls trans-focused faculty training after governor’s threat
The University of Nebraska at Kearney canceled a transgender-focused faculty training module after backlash erupted online and drew swift condemnation from Republican Gov. Jim Pillen.
The voluntary workshop, titled “How Can I Move From Supporting to Empowering Trans-spectrum Students?”, was part of the school’s Monday Morning Mentor series and referenced a 20-minute program developed by a North Carolina college aimed at helping professors create a more inclusive classroom environment.
The program drew attention after Libs of TikTok shared a university email about the training on X, criticizing the initiative and calling for the school to be defunded.
“University of Nebraska at Kearney … wants faculty to attend a meeting where they’ll be taught about Empowering Trans Students and creating a DEI-inclusive classroom,” the account posted. “This university receives our tax dollars … DEFUND … So sick of this trash.”
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Pillen reposted the criticism Monday and condemned the training.
“This nonsense is completely irrelevant and destructive to the University of Nebraska’s teaching mission, and out of touch with the values of the state it serves,” Pillen wrote on X. “University leaders must immediately root out this and all other similar programming across the entire system.”
He warned that failure to act could lead to investigations or funding cuts.
“If the University cannot police its own ranks and rid itself of the woke disease that has degraded so many ‘elite’ higher education institutions, it risks investigations, cuts to its funding, and, most importantly, the loss of the confidence of the people it serves,” he added.
The university removed the module Tuesday, according to Nebraska Public Media.
UNK said its focus “remains on rigorous academics and student success through effective teaching and creating a welcoming environment for all students,” the outlet reported, and that “the module referenced has been removed.”
NUMBER OF YOUNG ADULTS IDENTIFYING AS TRANSGENDER PLUNGES BY NEARLY HALF IN TWO YEARS
“We have addressed the issue and corrected our review process moving forward,” the school said.
Pillen later called the decision “good news.”
“Following my post last night, the University of Nebraska at Kearney took down the objectionable content,” he wrote on X. “That is good news.”
He added that higher education institutions must remain aligned with public expectations.
“The mission of education in America is not the advancement of woke indoctrination — it’s to grow critical learners and thinkers prepared to become the next generation of leaders and business builders,” Pillen said. “That’s the mission, and we cannot allow Nebraska institutions to be distracted from it.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to the University of Nebraska at Kearney for comment.
The “peace talks” with Iran – if they can even be called that – are going nowhere fast.
First, President Donald Trump canceled a visit by JD Vance to the non-existent talks. Then he canceled the lower-level delegation of Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Now the Iranians have come back with a proposal that entirely favors them – and which Trump has already rejected.
The murderous mullahs say they want to end their blockade of the Strait of Hormuz if the U.S. halts its blockade of Iranian ports. So far so good.
But then – guess what – they would put off the question of nuclear disarmament till some undetermined time in the future.
The president’s response to their pitch: How about never? Does never work for you?
Trump has told advisers he is not satisfied with the proposal, submitted through the mediators in Pakistan. Frustrated might be a better word.
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The president posted before Saturday’s attempted assassination: “Iran is having a very hard time figuring out who their leader is! They just don’t know! The infighting is between the ‘Hardliners,’ who have been losing BADLY on the battlefield, and the ‘Moderates,’ who are not very moderate at all (but gaining respect!), is CRAZY!”
Marco Rubio said: “What we’re dealing with here is a regime that’s run by a bunch of lunatics. They chant ‘death to America, ‘death to Israel,’ and we have to take that seriously.”
He added: “The goal here is simple: they can never have a nuclear weapon. And if you want to make sure they never have a nuclear weapon, you have to take away the things that would allow them to deliver one. That means their missiles, their drones, and their ability to threaten the region. So yes, that includes going after those capabilities.”
Since U.S. airstrikes killed all of Iran’s top leaders, Axios reports, the government is consumed by “warring factions” that cannot settle on a “coherent” position.
Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Ghalibaf, has been taking a hard line.
Meanwhile, despite a ceasefire orchestrated by Trump, Israel and Hezbollah, an Iranian proxy, continue to attack each other in Lebanon. Hezbollah has rejected the peace plan.
“The United States is no longer in a position to dictate its policy tto independent nations,” said Defense Ministry spokesman Reza Talaei-Nik, adding that the Trump administration “must abandon its illegal and irrational demands.”
Oil prices have shot up as the peace process remains in limbo. Gas prices rose yesterday to an average of $4.18 a gallon, their highest level in four years.
All this has fueled criticism that Trump, under pressure from Israel, launched the war impulsively and without a clear exit strategy.
The president keeps saying he’s won the war and “we have all the cards.”
But Trump is boxed in at the moment. He badly wants out of an unpopular war, but Iran, as usual, is being intransigent. And no agreement on nukes is worth anything without independent inspections. This was the same dilemma that faced the Obama administration.
WHY TRUMP’S WAR SPEECH FAILED: DECLARING VICTORY BUT STILL BOMBING IRAN BACK TO THE ‘STONE AGES’
The United Arab Emirates, which just left OPEC, could provide additional oil shipments now freed from the alliance’s restrictions.
There is a political dimension to this standoff as well. If Trump can’t come to terms on Iran’s nuclear enrichment – the very reason for going to war – it will undermine his ability to claim victory, as Tehran well knows.
The president posted yesterday:
“Iran has just informed us that they are in a ‘State of Collapse.’ They want us to ‘Open the Hormuz Strait,’ as soon as possible.” Now why would they tell him that?
Here’s one thing I know from decades of covering the man: Despite his threats to destroy Iranian civilization, Trump will never do that. His heart isn’t in it. He doesn’t want to go down in the history books as having wiped out an ancient civilization.
That’s why Trump keeps extending the ceasefire deadlines in hopes of reaching anything he can pronounce a reasonable agreement.
The U.S. military, as the president says, has obliterated Iran’s air force and navy. In that sense, it’s been a major victory, even if Democrats and some of Trump’s former allies in conservative media don’t want to admit it.
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But Iran does have one card to play, and that is doing nothing.
Donald Trump started this war, and after two months, is still trying to figure out how to get out of it.
Why Iran talks are in limbo as Trump scrambles for a way out of the war he started
University of Nebraska at Kearney pulls trans-focused faculty training after governor’s threat
Florida man allegedly shot woman in neck, dragged her back inside before hiding in backyard pool
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