NFL franchises spend months building creative videos to tease opponents, take shots at rivals, and make a social media splash. This year, thirty-one of those teams have been given material with the Mike Vrabel – Dianna Russini controversy unfolding with the New England Patriots. According to sources, the league has no plans of getting in the way.

The NFL will not pre-screen schedule release videos for jokes targeting the Patriots head coach and his widely covered scandal with the former Athletic reporter. Teams are operating on their own judgment, and their social media departments have full control over their content from start to finish.

“This is the day when teams are licensed to poke fun at each other. The [Vrabel story] has become such a public matter that teams can take the shot,” a source told Front Office Sports. “You may get a call from the Patriots. But the league is not going to get involved.”

The NFL office only gets involved when major decisions related to labor, the CBA, or officiating are on the table. A tabloid scandal involving a head coach doesn’t clear that bar.

“If the Jets, Bills, or Chargers choose to ridicule Vrabel, that’s an issue between the teams,” the source continued. “The league doesn’t need to mediate that.”

It’s been more than a month since Page Six published the photographs of Vrabel and Russini together at the Sedona resort ahead of the owners meeting. While both parties defended each other at the time, Russini eventually resigned. Page Six then published additional photographs that complicated the situation further. Vrabel issued a formal statement and went for counseling. The league, throughout this saga, maintained a singular stance.

“This is not a personal conduct policy, as we know it today,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said when asked if the league would take any action against Vrabel. “It’s a personal matter, and we’ll leave it at that.”

When pushed on the matter further, Goodell’s response mirrored the stance the league is now taking with the schedule release.

“I think the teams handle these matters when they’re personal matters,” Goodell said. “And they have a lot more information that can benefit everyone involved.”

But the story had already crossed into mainstream pop culture well before schedule release day. Charles Barkley’s Inside the NBA on ESPN referenced it on air, featuring Vrabel and Russini in a post that looked like the film Titanic. While the new developments every week already make matters worse, the schedule videos will certainly make it tough for Vrabel and Russini, considering how closely affiliated they are to the sport.

Not every team will take the shot, though. The Indianapolis Colts learned the cost of miscalculating last year when they posted a Minecraft-themed video mocking former Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill’s legal troubles. They had to pull the post within hours, issue a public apology, and even face a copyright threat from Microsoft. The league never had to intervene – the backlash handled it independently.

The risk of going too far always exists. But there is one franchise whose entire schedule release identity is built on doing exactly that. And they already have the Pats on their calendar for 2026.

Can the Chargers make life difficult for Mike Vrabel & Co.?

Of the 31 teams, the Los Angeles Chargers are the most likely to go there. About two weeks ago, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer made the case on the Dan Patrick Show that Los Angeles would not be able to resist taking a shot at Vrabel.

“My guess would be that you’ll probably see hints of it during the schedule release in a couple of weeks, with the way that teams all make fun of each other during the schedule release,” Breer said. “You see what the Chargers do every year, right? It’s like nothing is out of bounds with the Chargers, so my guess would be they will. And if they don’t, then it’s going to be a story that they didn’t.”

Now, the Chargers actually have a proven track record of being the most consistent and aggressive identity in schedule release history, producing viral videos every year that target opponents by name and situation. Their 2023 anime-themed video called out Mike McDaniel (former Miami Dolphins head coach), Derrick Henry, and Kirk Cousins. Their 2024 Sims-themed video mocked Travis Kelce, Taylor Swift, Harrison Butker, and Aaron Rodgers individually, each tied to a specific storyline from that offseason.

Their 2025 Minecraft-themes video kept the format going, earning the franchise another round of coverage as the undisputed gold standard in this space, and everyone knows it.

“The Chargers are masters at it,” another source told FOS. “They don’t only take shots at teams; they take shots at individuals as well.”

The individual targeting is the point. The Chargers find a specific moment, a specific controversy, and build a scene around it. Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini give them exactly that kind of material. What’s more, the competitive edge raises the stakes even further.

The Patriots eliminated the Chargers in the Wild Card round with a 16-3 victory this past January. If the 2026 NFL schedule drops a Patriots-Chargers matchup at SoFi Stadium, a joke about Vrabel on schedule release day would land as creative content, rival shot, and a score-setter all in one go. That combination is precisely the kind of angle the Chargers’ social media team has built its reputation around.

Additionally, internal relationships could still give teams a pause, even the Chargers. NFL head coaches occupy a very small, interconnected world – 32 jobs, shared history, and long-standing personal ties. Risking that, many believe, can be a double-edged sword.

“Teams have to answer to one another. Coaches have to answer one another,” another source shared with FOS. “People may have relationships with Vrabel, (Patriots owner) Bob Kraft, or (Patriots EVP) Eliot Wolf. If you go there, people inside your own building may take issue with you. And if you dish it out, you better be able to take it.”

These are also not Bill Belichick’s Patriots. That dynasty spent two decades winning six Super Bowls and bending rules, making New England an easy target. Mike Vrabel and third-year quarterback Drake Maye are a different read – a franchise in early transition that carries none of the institutional resentment the old regime generated. Teams that pile on Vrabel may find the tone lands differently than they expect.

The Chargers have the track record, the motivation, and the material. Whether they use it is a decision that gets made internally. Whatever the case, the league has made it clear that it will not be a part of that conversation.