New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel took questions about his recent decision to step away from the team amid a series of photo leaks that appear to show him engaging in romantic and personal moments with former New York Times/The Athletic reporter Dianna Russini.

Vrabel will miss multiple days of the NFL Draft, which he announced early on Thursday. 

In the hours that followed that announcement, photos that appeared to show Vrabel and Russini kissing at a bar were published by the New York Post and were reportedly taken six years ago.

Later Thursday, TMZ published photos of Vrabel and Russini at a casino.

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“My previous actions don’t meet the standard that I hold myself to,” Vrabel said. “My priorities are my family and this football team, in that order. And there is a balance there that I am going to create.”

At the end of the news conference, Vrabel was asked to explain why he initially made a statement calling photos of him and Russini at an Arizona resort “laughable” after they were published by the New York Post earlier in April.

“That’s a private and personal matter. I don’t think that those comments … it was an attempt to protect your family,” Vrabel said.

It was the last question Vrabel answered before storming off the podium and out of the room.

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Vrabel will be leaving the team’s NFL Draft in the hands of general manager Eliot Wolf.

“I’m confident in the people that we have. I’m confident in our preparation,” Vrabel said. 

“When you prioritize your family first and your job, that’s what’s required. And that’s what’s was necessary. Got a lot of support from everybody involved. So, that’s what I was able to do — and willingly — and I want to do that.

“When my family needs me, I’ll be there.”

When asked if he would miss any more football activities in the coming weeks, Vrabel said, “I can’t answer that. I can only say whatever my family needs, that’s what I’m going to provide.

“I have to do what’s needed of me with my family. So, again, I’m confident that whatever they need, I’m going to provide.”

When asked if he felt he had to prove himself again to his players, Vrabel said, “I have to make them a priority, that’s what I have to do. I have to make my family and this football team my priority.”

The Patriots released a statement ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft Thursday night voicing support for Vrabel.

“The New England Patriots fully support Mike Vrabel’s decision to prioritize his family first, as well as his own well-being,” the statement from the Patriots said. 

“Mike has been open with us about his commitment to being the best version of himself for his family, this team and our fans, and we respect the steps he is taking to follow through on that commitment.

“We are confident in the leadership and communication Mike has established with our personnel staff throughout this pre-draft process. While he will not be present at the facility on Saturday, we know the draft evaluations are complete, and Eliot Wolf and his personnel staff are prepared to execute our draft as planned this weekend.”

Russini resigned from her position with The New York Times last week.

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The block around Fernando Mendoza’s home in Coral Gables, Florida was roped off by early afternoon on Thursday and the roast pig – a lechon asado to Cubans like the Mendozas – was in the Caja China all day.

No, Mendoza didn’t make it to Pittsburgh for the 2026 NFL draft. But his family’s draft party in South Florida was, by all accounts, epic.

And that’s the way it should be because it was befitting of Mendoza being selected by the Las Vegas Raiders as the first overall pick of the draft.

“The last five month have been such a blessing by God, I can’t thank him enough,” Mendoza said in his first interview after being selected. “I’m just looking forward to get to work, improve at the next level. College was fantastic. I’m so bless to have that career.

“But now I step into a great game, the NFL, look forward to proving and earning it every single day.”

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Not bad for a kid who used to occasionally confess to family, friends and teammates, “I don’t imagine myself a high draft pick.”

That all changed when Mendoza transferred to Indiana University before the 2025 season, and out of that unlikely college football power came the improbable Heisman Trophy winner, national championship winning quarterback, and first pick in the draft.

The Raiders used only a minute or two of the eight allotted before turning in their card to the NFL for Mendoza.

Only in America.

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The Raiders believe in Mendoza. But the Raiders organization is rife with quarterback misfires in its recent history.

The club signed Geno Smith to make them a contender last season under coach Pete Carroll. Smith led the NFL with 17 interceptions, Carroll was fired, and the team was so bad as to “earn” the first pick in this draft.

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Before that, Gardner Minshew failed as a bridge quarterback and Aidan O’Connell didn’t quite develop into a dependable starter.

Before that, Jimmy Garoppolo signed as a free agent but was often injured and inconsistent when healthy. He started only six games in 2023 and was released the following offseason.

Before that, it was Derek Carr, mostly functional during his time, getting benched in 2022 and ultimately released.

You get the point. It’s been awhile since Ken Stabler, Jim Plunkett or even Rich Gannon won a Super Bowl for the franchise.

Mendoza is expected to turn that sad narrative around. But it won’t necessarily be right away. The Raiders signed veteran Kirk Cousins earlier this offseason as a bridge starter while Mendoza learns and develops.

The rookie will have some time. But not forever.

He’s been drafted to lift a legacy franchise back to glory. But that won’t be an easy assignment because other franchises will get a vote whether it happens.

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Mendoza goes to the AFC West where it is impossible to win without outstanding quarterback play.

The Kansas City Chiefs have owned the division since Patrick Mahomes became their starting quarterback in 2018. They won it seven consecutive times until falling back last season.

The Denver Broncos won the division last season because they have one of the NFL’s rising quarterbacks in Bo Nix, who came close to a 4,000-yard season in 2025.

The Los Angeles Chargers made the playoffs a season ago and Justin Herbert typically is among the league leaders in passing yards (9th last year) and touchdown passes (tied for seventh).

Now the Raiders answer with Fernando Mendoza – officially the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft.

Authorities announced the arrest Wednesday of a Long Island PTA mom accused of siphoning more than $50,000 from an elementary school over a three-year span while she was employed as a New York Police Department officer.

Jodi Scarlatos, 43, of Centereach, served as treasurer of the Jericho Elementary School PTA when she allegedly began using association funds to bankroll personal expenses and outings around the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office said.

According to a lawsuit filed in Suffolk County Supreme Court, Scarlatos allegedly made the troubling transactions as she began defaulting on her mortgage payments in July 2022, prompting her bank to initiate foreclosure proceedings. The suit said she owes a total debt exceeding $375,000.

She was reportedly caught after her control of the PTA bank account was transferred to a new board of members around 2023, at which point the alleged discrepancies began to surface.

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“Parent Teacher Associations serve a vital function in school communities throughout Suffolk County,” District Attorney Raymond Tierney said. 

“The allegations in this case represent a betrayal of the trust the residents of Centereach placed in this defendant, and my office will continue to hold accountable everyone who unlawfully enriches themselves at the public’s expense.” 

Her lawyer told Fox News Digital Thursday the PTA mom had previously worked as a transit officer with the New York Police Department. She reportedly retired from the force in January 2025. 

According to prosecutors, Scarlatos served as treasurer of the Jericho Elementary School PTA from July 2020 through September 2023.

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During that time, she was issued a debit card intended solely for PTA-related expenses but allegedly used the funds for restaurants, hotels, rental cars, Best Buy, Ticketmaster, Amazon and Verizon Wireless. 

Scarlatos also allegedly moved cash from the PTA coffers into her personal bank account, prosecutors alleged.

In addition, officials said she continued making transactions during summer recesses and holiday breaks, periods when school was not in session.

In July 2022, Scarlatos allegedly stopped paying her mortgage, according to a foreclosure lawsuit filed by U.S. Bank Trust National Association in March 2024. Court records point to mounting financial pressure and significant debt leading up to the action.

The following year, just months before she stepped away from her school role, the embattled PTA official had initiated a small fundraiser for a hospital supported by the elementary school, according to her Facebook page.

“Help me raise funds for St. Jude!,” she wrote in a Jan. 17, 2023, Facebook post. “I’ve joined the fight to help end childhood cancer by participating in the St. Jude Math-A-Thon. 

“I’m solving math problems and raising funds to help St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. You can help me reach my fundraising goal for the kids of St. Jude, who are battling cancer and other life-threatening diseases.”

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Scarlatos’ transactions allegedly continued until the next board members for the 2023–2024 school year took over and discovered the troubling findings, according to investigators.

Scarlatos surrendered to the district attorney’s office Monday and was arraigned before District Court Judge Jonathan Bloom on a charge of grand larceny in the second degree, a Class C felony.

If convicted, she faces five to 15 years in prison. 

The Long Island mom was released without bail and is due back in court May 5, 2026.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Jericho Elementary School PTA and NYPD for more information.