"People Who Have Affairs...": Dave Portnoy Makes Surprising Admission About Dianna Russini's Future

Dianna Russini's media career took another hit this week after bodycam footage undercut a story she once told on a radio show. The former NFL insider had already resigned from The Athletic in April, after leaked photos and texts tied her to Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel. With The Athletic's internal investigation still open, speculation about her next move keeps building. Enter Dave Portnoy. The Barstool Sports founder says he would hire Russini without a second thought, brushing aside a scandal that has kept other networks at a distance.

Would Dave Portnoy really hire Dianna Russini?

Portnoy didn't hedge when asked directly. While promoting his memoir, "Cancel Me If You Can," he told Us Weekly, "No-brainer, if she wanted to work here, we'd do it." He admitted the optics of a top NFL insider allegedly involved with a sitting head coach look bad, but he refused to treat it as career-ending.

"She'll land somewhere, and you know, if people who have affairs are never allowed to work again in this country, you're gonna lose a significant amount of the workforce," Portnoy said. He went further, arguing the punishment doesn't fit the offense. "It is obviously really sad, but at the same time, that's not like a capital offense that should end somebody's professional career. An affair is not like a murder."

That stance puts him at odds with traditional newsrooms like The New York Times, which owns The Athletic and holds reporters to far stricter ethical lines. Barstool has never operated under those same constraints, and Portnoy has built his brand on ignoring them entirely.

What happened with Dianna Russini's bodycam video?

Dianna Russini's credibility took a separate hit when police bodycam footage surfaced. She had once described talking her way out of a traffic ticket by FaceTiming a head coach. The footage told a different story. Instead, she name-dropped league figures and showed the officer texts with Minnesota Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell, walking away with only a verbal warning.

That gap between the story and the footage has fueled doubts about where she lands next, especially with her old employer still digging into the matter. PFN analyst Terry Biggs didn't sugarcoat it: "Russini will find a home at Barstool or Dan Le Batard's show. She will conduct a teary interview. However, her reputation inside the league is shot. She may become an NFL commentator, but this scandal is now her entire legacy."

For now, Russini remains unemployed in sports media, and it's unclear if she even wants back in. In leaked texts with New York Times reporters, she referred to herself as a "former journalist," a phrase that says more than any headline could.