Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy seemingly caught a stray from former NFL insider Dianna Russini when she was pulled over by police in January for texting and driving, as seen in video footage of the incident making rounds online.
Russini — who resigned from The Athletic after Page Six published photos showing her and Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel holding hands and hugging while at an Arizona resort in March — was on her phone while driving because she was breaking the news that Bills head coach Sean McDermott was getting fired.
The former ESPN insider said McCarthy “sucks” — although she did not specifically mention him — when she learned the officer was a Vikings fan.
“Obviously you were on your phone for a while … I understand you’ve got a job,” the officer said.
“You know who I was on the phone with? Brian Daboll. He wants the job,” Russini said of the then-vacant head coach job in Buffalo, adding that the two were on the phone when she got pulled over.
“I’m actually — I’m not a fan of either,” the officer said, to which Russini asked, “What is your team?”
“I’m a Vikings fan, unfortunately,” he replied.
Russini showed the officer her phone, and an apparent text exchange with Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell.
“Oh my God, wow, pretty cool!” the officer said.
“I love the Vikings, KOC [Kevin O’Connell] is awesome. Your quarterback sucks though,” Russini said.
It’s assumed she was referring to McCarthy since his second-year struggles plagued the team this past year and raised questions about his future with the team.
After handing over her registration, the cop went back to his car.
“I’m gonna cut you a break on the cell phone,” he said when he returned. “I understand your job requires you to be on the phone a lot. Just try to wait ‘til you get home, OK?”
The Bills named promoted offensive coordinator Joe Brady to head coach on Jan. 27.
Daboll was hired as a offensive coordinator by the Tennessee Titans that same day.
After letting her go with a warning, the officer said, “Keep me updated with the Vikings, OK? Let me know if KOC is going to get a new quarterback.”
The Vikings signed quarterback Kyler Murray to a one-year deal in March after McCarthy’s injury-filled 2025 campaign.
McCarthy, the Vikings’ No. 10 pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, and Murray will compete for the starting role.
Russini made headlines this week after after a New York Times article highlighted the incident — and rehashed a video of her discussing it while on the “Stugotz and Company” podcast in February.
At the time, Russini claimed she FaceTimed the officer’s favorite head coach and claimed that said coach “played all into it,” telling the officer that “you should let her go, she’s a good citizen.’”
Those events were not shown in the video footage of her being pulled over.
Dianna Russini/Instagram
Russini’s storytelling on the podcast was “unacceptable conduct,” said Danielle Rhoades Ha, a Times Company spokeswoman — adding that editors at The Athletic, which is owned by the Times, had been unaware of the story.
Russini is currently under review by her former employer to determine if her reporting was influenced by her relationship with Vrabel.
She has not spoken publicly since she resigned from The Athletic on April 14.
Russini and her husband Kevin Goldschmidt have two sons together.
Vrabel, who received support from the Patriots amid the photo scandal, and his wife Jen have been married since 1999 and have two sons together.
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