The New England Patriots enter the 2026 NFL Draft with 11 total selections in hand. However, their head coach won’t be in the facility for a majority of them: Mike Vrabel will be away from the team on Saturday, the third day of the draft, for personal reasons.
In his place, executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf be running the shot from the Patriots’ Gillette Stadium headquarters. The team has eight selections on Saturday.
Vrabel exiting the draft early comes in the aftermath of a media frenzy created by photos showing him and NFL reporter Dianna Russini at an adults-only resort in Arizona. Russini has since re-signed from her position with The Athletic, while the reigning NFL Coach of the Year announced that he would be seeking counseling over the weekend.
On Thursday, 30 minutes before the start of the draft’s first round, gave some more insight into his decision to miss the third day of the draft and his situation overall.
“I understand that there are questions, but I take accountability for my actions and the actions that caused a distraction to the people that I care most about: my family, this football team, the organization and our fans,” Vrabel said to open his statement.
“My previous actions don’t meet the standard that I hold myself to. They don’t. And what I believe is best for the two most important things in my life — my family and this football team — is for us to take the necessary steps to walk together and to give them what I told them I would give them, which is the best version of me. And that’s what we’re going to do. And that’s going to start, that has started, and that will continue this weekend, and it will continue for however long it takes for me to give them and to complete that promise of giving them the best version of me possible. That’s what’s going to happen and that’s what’s been happening.”
Vrabel went on to thank the Patriots’ ownership, his fellow coaches and his players for their support. The organization had released a statement earlier on Thursday in which it claimed that it supported Vrabel’s “decision to prioritize his family first, as well as his own well-being.”
Vrabel echoed those remarks during his brief appearance at the podium on Thursday.
“My priorities are my family and this football team, in that order,” he said. “And there’s a balance there that I’m going to create. My family needs me this weekend, and that’s where I’ll be. I’m confident in the people that we have. I’m confident in the preparation. Thankful for Eliot and his staff that have prepared us for this night, for this weekend.”