She has had one helluva week.
After resigning from the New York Times amid a blistering scandal and a resulting media circus, Page Six hears that top NFL journalist Dianna Russini mounted a daring rescue of an elderly man and his dog from an overturned Jeep.
Local news site Patch reported that around 5 p.m. on Wednesday, a 17-year-old driving a Honda Civic turned onto a street in suburban Wyckoff, New Jersey, and collided with the Jeep, flipping the 4×4 onto its side.
The day after resigning from the New York Times amid a media circus, Dianna Russini rescued an elderly man and his dog from a Jeep. Boyd A. Loving
The drama unfolded in the wake of a scandal over photographs that Page Six published showing Russini at the Ambiente resort in Sedona, Arizona, with New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel. © Page SIx
According to the report, the 73-year-old driver of the Jeep and his dog were stuck inside.
Enter Russini, who — just the day before — had quit the Times amid an internal investigation into photographs published by Page Six, which appeared to show her holding hands with Mike Vrabel, the head coach of the New England Patriots.
An eyewitness tells us that Russini was driving along the same road as the Jeep, and the accident happened right in front of her car.
The Jeep collided with a Honda Civic, according to local reports Boyd A. Loving
The accident happened in Wyckoff, New Jersey. Boyd A. Loving
“She ran out and had a tall man put her on top of the Jeep to open the door, and she and the other guy pulled the driver and his dog out of the Jeep,” our spy told us.
Police arrived soon after.
It’s a stunning turn of events in an already tumultuous week in the Vrabel-Russini debacle.
She was previously a top journalist at ESPN Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
We reported on April 7 that Russini and Vrabel has been spotted together at the luxury Ambiente resort in Sedona, Arizona, more than two hours away from a work event that both had been expected to attend. (They’re both married to other people).
They told us that they had been at the hotel with other friends and denied a romance.
Vrabel’s boss, Steven Ginsburg of the Athletic — the formerly independent sports site that was acquired by the Times in 2022 and now functions as its sports section — immediately backed Russini, telling us that the pictures “lacked vital context.”
Vrabel remains with the Patriots. Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
We further broke the news that Ginsburg had launched an investigation as soon as he became aware of the photographs, and had sidelined the top reporter until the probe had been completed.
By Tuesday, Russini had resigned from the paper, saying, “I have no interest in submitting to a public inquiry that has already caused far more damage than I am willing to accept.”
She added, “Rather than allowing this to continue, I have decided to step aside now — before my current contract expires on June 30. I do so not because I accept the narrative that has been constructed around this episode, but because I refuse to lend it further oxygen or to let it define me or my career.”
Russini didn’t comment on the crash.