There’s no way around this: Mike Vrabel’s personal life is now undeniably a New England Patriots football story.
Vrabel surprised the local media for the second time this week with a press conference at the eleventh hour. The podium, where he usually stands tall and offers good-natured smirks and barbs, has become an uncomfortable place for him as the photos of him exclusively socializing with former NFL insider Dianna Russini rain down through the tabloids.
He still hasn’t said exactly what it is for which he needs to atone, but the photos speak for themselves. As for Vrabel’s initial comments to the ‘New York Post’ weeks ago that their photo scoop of the now-notorious duo was “laughable”, he called it an “attempt to protect your family.”
“I would never be dismissive,” he said.
Vrabel’s walking a tightrope of trying to recommit to his family publicly without incurring further hurt. He’s also doing so while balancing two crystal vases, on a wire line strung between the penthouses of two skyscrapers.
He thanked the Krafts for giving him the grace to miss Day 3 of the NFL draft this weekend to enter counseling, but was vague about why he needed to start his recovery process Saturday, and how available he’ll be on the day the Patriots have eight picks.
“I’m confident that whatever they need, I’m going to provide,” Vrabel said, and added that his Saturday plan is one he committed to “willingly.”
How will that realistically work? Historically, Day 3 has provided some important names in Patriots history, (Tom Brady, Julian Edelman, and even backup Matt Cassel). They also traded for Hall of Fame receiver Randy Moss on the final day of the 2007 draft. Will Vrabel be on-call for such maneuvers on Saturday?
“When you prioritize your family first and then your job, that’s what’s required. That’s what was necessary,” he said, and expressed his confidence in the front office staff, including executive Eliot Wolf.
Vrabel was also noncommittal about when he’ll return to coaching voluntary workouts or any future football activities in Foxboro.
It’s hard to imagine him staying away from the team for too long. He expressed, numerous times, how his priorities line up: his family, then this team. But then again, it was difficult to imagine anything would reach this point, even when the initial photos ran weeks ago.
“My previous actions don’t meet the standard that I hold myself to. They don’t. What I believe is best for the two most important things in my life, my family and this football team, is to take the necessary steps together to give them what I told I’d give them, which is the best version of me.”
Vrabel’s debut season at the helm in Foxboro was close to a fairy tale. This twist is more like something out of Grimm’s: distasteful and a cautionary tale. Hopefully this time away will begin personal healing, but it certainly could have professional implications, even without disciplinary action from ownership or the league.
