Diana Russini wondered whether she was ready for the responsibilities of leadership.
The feisty NFL reporter left ESPN last offseason for The Athletic, a sports media company owned by The New York Times, and arguably increased her profile in the process.
During a video call with The Washington Post earlier this week, The Athletic editor-in-chief Steven Ginsburg revealed the hiring pitch to Russini.
“My pitch was to come to The Athletic, be the NFL’s main insider, and work with an incredible staff across the country,” Ginsburg said, adding that the position would give him the opportunity to “stand out on my own” while teaming up with the site’s team-focused NFL reporters to deliver original, impactful stories.
In previous interviews, Russini explained that while he was incredibly grateful for the great career advancements he’d made at ESPN, he’d reached a breaking point where he didn’t see his role expanding anytime soon.
Speaking to The Washington Post this week, Mr. Russini, 41, recalled his uncertainty about whether to take the job and how he was gauging the pressures of being the paper’s top reporter covering the nation’s biggest sports league.
“I wasn’t really concerned about my name or my credibility as a journalist. I think my biggest concern and fear at the time was just to be able to do the job at the level that The Athletic wanted me to, which was to be a top senior insider for the NFL… [whereas] “At ESPN, Adam Schefter was the king and he still is the king,” Rassini said.
“The hardest part about making the move was getting used to being uncomfortable for a while. It took a few months, but when I realized the work was the same as what I was actually doing — communicating, building relationships, writing, sharing, covering the NFL — all the nervousness disappeared and my confidence returned.”
She also worried about giving up a medium that is especially powerful: television, a network that’s on by default in bars, restaurants, gyms and airports across the country.
But she continues to appear on television and digital video, appearing on shows hosted by fellow former ESPN expats Colin Cowherd, Rich Eisen, Dan Patrick and Dan Le Batard, plus as a guest on Barstool’s “Pardon My Take” podcast for years.
Highlights from these shows are then clipped by digital media and spread across the Internet, giving Russini widespread exposure.
They also don’t have much of the “hurry up and wait” element of being an ESPN TV personality who has to be on call all day for shows like “Get Up,” “SportsCenter” and “NFL Live.”
Even though he no longer works at ESPN. Courtesy of Carlos Lima
As a result, the move has paid off in terms of the level of storytelling Russini is able to deliver in his reporting.
ESPN is the NFL’s multi-billion dollar rights partner.
Not ESPN though I never have While it’s common for Russini to publish stories that offend NFL owners — Seth Wickersham and Don Van Natta Jr.’s coverage of the Patriots over the years being notable examples — it was outside the scope of Russini’s role as an on-site reporter.
At The Athletic, she was more proactive, leveraging the outlet’s collegial framework and working with the site’s team reporters.
One example is after the Panthers fired Frank Reich, and after Matt Rhule was fired in 2022, it would be the second straight year since a head coach was fired mid-season.
Working with Panthers reporter Joseph ParsonRussini said the team had a “Hunger Games”-like culture, with other coaches communicating directly with Panthers owner David Tepper rather than through Reich.
“We dug deeper than just the obvious story,” Russini said.
“The owner and the PR guy were really upset. [at me last season]I’ve had a lot of really difficult conversations with these teams over lunches, phone calls, text messages, emails, and more.
“But what I’ve learned is that people get upset in the moment because they don’t want to put information out there. But there’s an underlying sense of respect, even though it may not feel like it in the moment.”
“And when you’re able to really dig into the details, you find that teams who were always so perplexed by the coverage are now giving you access to information later on because they know you’re good at what you do. You become a trusted source on that team and everyone knows you.”
Last week, the media company launched a new podcast with Rassini called “Scoop City,” co-hosted by former NFL quarterback Chase Daniel.
They are quickly lining up a line-up of A-list guests, with Cowboys COO and co-owner Stephen Jones set to appear on Friday and Eagles running back Saquon Barkley and Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins set to appear next week.
In the midst of this career breakthrough, Russini and her husband, Kevin Goldschmidt, have two young sons, 1-year-old Joey and 2-year-old Michael.
Around last season’s trade deadline, Russini was texting NFL GMs around 6 a.m., the perfect time to connect with coaches and front-office staffers who start their days early.
A few minutes later, she picked up her phone again to find a surprising message from him: “Are you OK?”
She soon discovered that her 2-year-old son, Michael, had asked the anonymous GM for $50 via Apple Pay.
Together they host the “Scoop City” podcast. Courtesy of Carlos Lima
“The GM thought I was being held hostage or something,” Russini said with a laugh, noting that since becoming a mother, the men in football have been incredibly supportive of her and understanding, even with a toddler fussing on the phone.
“I don’t know how Michael was able to do that but he was watching Peppa Pig or Bluey on my phone and it happened.”
Countless times, major news stories broke while Russini was changing diapers, bathing her children or getting them into their car seats.
There is a finite window of time for breaking news or for an elusive source to finally call, and reporters in and around sports must field those calls, even at inconvenient hours.
Russini credits her husband with keeping the train from going off the tracks.
“Kevin supports what I’m doing and understands the NFL on a level that he should in football,” she said.
“I don’t know how you can do this with somebody who doesn’t understand the situation, because he understands the trade deadline. He has all the contacts in my phone. He understands why I have to take calls from NFL owners.”
