“Kicking their a**”: TMZ faces heat after missing early Mike Vrabel–Dianna Russini photos amid NFL backlash

The Mike Vrabel–Dianna Russini story took another turn when TMZ released fresh photos from a Mississippi casino, but instead of leading the conversation, the outlet faced immediate backlash for missing the original scoop that had already pushed the controversy into the spotlight.

The story had already broken weeks earlier through the New York Post, which published the first Arizona photos and later added older New York images, making it clear that the Mike Vrabel-Dianna Russini scandal had a longer timeline than initially expected and raising serious questions about how TMZ let that opportunity slip.

Missed decision changes the course of Mike Vrabel–Dianna Russini's story

The most crucial detail came from Pablo Torre, who explained how TMZ had the first chance to run the images but chose not to act. Speaking on “Pablo Torre Finds Out” in April 2026, Torre gave a detailed account of the situation and said, “TMZ was offered these photographs first. I’m told a woman provided these photographs to TMZ. They did not name Dianna Russini, but they did identify the NFL head coach with a woman who’s not his wife, I’m told. And the price requested was indeed four figures. And TMZ, to their shame, I think in retrospect, weren’t super interested.”

He continued on the same episode and explained how quickly things changed once the identity became clear, saying, “But by the time they figured out that the other woman was in fact Dianna Russini a day or so later, the tipster had seemingly already made a deal with the New York Post.”

That decision allowed the New York Post to take control of the story with back-to-back reports, first showing the Arizona encounter and then revealing older images from New York, while TMZ only entered later with a Jan. 31, 2024, photo from Beau Rivage Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi, which added another location but not the same impact.

The reaction from the NFL world was immediate and blunt on April 23, 2026. Dave Portnoy wrote on X, “Ok, TMZ, we get it. You lost. Sit this one out.”

Also, CNN Alex Thompson followed with a sarcastic take, posting on X the same day, “TMZ responding after Page Six beat them this week,” referencing the Post’s Page Six section.

Boston radio host Glenn Ordway added during his April 23 broadcast, “TMZ suddenly realises that NY Post Page Six is kicking their a** on this story, and so they finally check in with their own pictures… ‘EXCLUSIVE’ ??? probably NOT.”

Even veteran NFL reporter Mike Freeman reacted on X, writing, “WHO WAS TAKING ALL THESE PHOTOS OF THEM!!!!” while podcaster Karan Gupta summed up the timing in a short post, “TMZ has arrived.”

With confirmed sightings across Arizona, New York, and Mississippi, the Mike Vrabel-Dianna Russini scandal continues to unfold, but the biggest takeaway remains tied to timing, as TMZ had the first shot at the story and let it slip, a mistake the NFL world continues to call out.

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