Seven questions about ballots, conflict disclosures and institutional responsibility. A public record of what we know, what we are asking, and what comes next.
No response clock has started. This tracker does not establish a conflict, an improper vote, or any individual’s ballot. Earlier reporting is dated below; it is not a claim about what institutions have said today.
AP describes its NFL awards as a vote by a 50-member media panel.
Associated Press · awards process, January 2026 ↗The published February 2026 panel list includes Dianna Russini.
Associated Press · voter list, via Yahoo Sports ↗The Patriots announced Mike Vrabel’s AP Coach of the Year award on February 5, 2026.
New England Patriots · award announcement ↗AP reported Russini’s resignation on April 14 following published photographs and an internal investigation. This does not establish how she voted or that a ballot was improper.
Associated Press · April 14, 2026 ↗On April 19, Pro Football Talk reported that its ballot-review questions to AP had not been answered. Those were another outlet’s requests, not ours.
Mike Florio / Pro Football Talk, via Yahoo Sports · April 19, 2026 ↗A published ballot would establish what was voted, without asking readers to infer it.
No contact recorded. Prepared questions are not sent requests.
Written rules and the scope of any review would help readers understand the safeguards.
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Panel membership should be established from a current institutional response, not assumed from an older roster.
No contact recorded. Prepared questions are not sent requests.
A published standard makes the process understandable. We are not asserting that a specific voter should be removed.
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The scope and methodology would help readers evaluate the review. We are not characterizing a review as either a blanket clearance or proof of biased reporting.
No contact recorded. Prepared questions are not sent requests.
A yes or no, and the scope if applicable, would establish whether a review occurred.
No contact recorded. Prepared questions are not sent requests.
We are asking for the boundary between a voting body’s responsibilities and the league’s responsibilities.
No contact recorded. Prepared questions are not sent requests.
Publish substantive responses alongside the questions, including answers that resolve concerns. Close each question when its factual request has been addressed. A lack of response is not evidence of misconduct. Close the case only when the remaining questions have been resolved and the closing decision is explained.
We don’t let go of the rope. We republish until someone answers.
That is our editorial commitment, not a claim that follow-ups have already been sent or scheduled.
What did The Athletic’s Russini review actually find? →
What questions did Aaron Rodgers raise about Russini and ESPN? →