For the first time in months, Mike Vrabel isn’t making headlines because of a press conference, a public statement, or a media interview. Instead, it was a family photo.

Images from his son Tyler Vrabel’s engagement celebration recently surfaced online, where the New England Patriots head coach and his wife, Jen were seen all smiles celebrating the big day with their family and friends.

“The most perfect engagement surrounded by the people I love most,” Tyler Vrabel’s fiancée, Mariah Romano, shared via Instagram on Sunday, June 7. 

This announcement comes almost three months after Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini were photographed together. When Page Six published photos in early April showing Vrabel with NFL reporter Dianna Russini holding hands poolside at the Ambiente resort in Sedona, Arizona, the social media blew up instantly.

In the aftermath, Russini resigned from The Athletic. However, the story refused to die down, and adding more fuel to the fire were more images that came forth on April 23, pictures dated back to 2020. As the discussion continued, Vrabel publicly announced that he would begin counseling.

“As I said the other day, I promised my family, this organization, and this team that I was going to give them the best version of me that I can give them,” Vrabel said. “In order to do so, I have committed to seeking counseling, starting this weekend. This is something that I have given a lot of thought to and is something I would advise a player to do if I were counseling them.” And he even got a seal of approval from the Patriots hours before the draft, saying that they “fully support” Vrabel.

Later on, when he was interviewed by the media during the Patriots OTAs in late May, everyone noticed he had his wedding ring on. It signaled that matters had settled down between the couple. However, when asked about the balance between family and football ahead of the upcoming season, he kept his answer short and straightforward: “Really good.”

“I appreciate my family is great,” Vrabel said. “I love Jen, I love the boys, I love, you know, my personal friends, and you know, this spring is focused on really the coaching staff, the players.”

Those words mattered. But words are one thing. Showing up together, smiling, at a family milestone is another.

His son, Tyler Vrabel, who used to be an offensive tackle for the Atlanta Falcons, currently serves as an offensive line consultant for his former school, Boston College.

As for Mike Vrabel, he is still fielding questions about that scandal. And according to one crisis communication expert, he has been answering for it in all the wrong ways.

Mike Vrabel’s ‘Laughable’ response backfires

Crisis expert Molly McPherson spoke to USA TODAY Sports and did not hold back. She called Vrabel’s handling of the situation a staged rehabilitation, one that has been clumsily sequenced from the start.

“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.”

When the first photos surfaced back in April, Vrabel dismissed them immediately.

“These photos show a completely innocent interaction and any suggestion otherwise is laughable,” he said. “This doesn’t deserve any further response.”

A second round of images dropped later that same month, and suddenly that response looked far less convincing.

McPherson’s sharpest criticism cut straight to the core of why the controversy refuses to die down.

“Accountability that only activates when you get caught isn’t accountability. And Mike Vrabel hasn’t taken any accountability. But the sum is a disaster.”  Molly McPherson said.

Russini resigned from The Athletic in April. Vrabel has since spoken publicly about seeking counseling and committed to his family at OTAs. But with an expert now framing his entire response as image repair rather than genuine accountability, the conversation doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon.