The overhaul of The Athletic’s NFL coverage is continuing with Dianna Russini set to depart ESPN and join The New York Times-owned publication as its top NFL insider.
Andrew Marchand of The New York Post was the first to report the news that Russini will be leaving the Worldwide Leader after eight years as one of its main NFL reporters. While ESPN offered a raise to Russini to keep her from leaving to join The Athletic, she chose to leave Bristol anyways.
Russini’s role at ESPN was multifaceted, encompassing reporting, news-breaking, hosting, analysis and features. She appeared on several of the network’s most popular NFL shows, including NFL Live, Sunday NFL Countdown, Fantasy Football Now, Get Up, SportsCenter and ESPN Radio.
At The Athletic, she’ll write NFL stories, in addition to contributing to their video and podcast content, writes Marchand.
The addition of Russini marks a shift in coverage for The Athletic, which is shifting to more league-based coverage after its latest round of layoffs that came nearly two months ago. Those impacted by the layoffs included columnist/Indiana senior writer Bob Kravitz, Dallas Cowboys beat writer Bob Sturm, and Cincinnati Bengals beat writer Jay Morrison, among several others.
Despite the fact that negotiations between Russini and ESPN were reportedly going well, she ultimately decided to leave for The Athletic. According to The Post, Russini’s departure from ESPN is expected to lead to more opportunities for Lindsey Thiry, Kimberly Martin and Jeff Darlington. Thiry is expected to become a full-time NFL TV reporter for ESPN, while Martin and Darlington could see an increase in their air time.
