New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel married his college sweetheart, Jen Vrabel, in 1999.
Mike made headlines in March when Page Six published a photo of him and NFL reporter Deanna Russini hugging and holding hands at a luxury hotel in Sedona, Arizona.
The NFL coach told Page Six that his interaction with Russini was “totally innocent,” and while Russini told Us they were a group of six, multiple witnesses said they didn’t see anyone with them at the hotel.
Jen has yet to comment on the scandal.
Below is everything you need to know about Mike’s wife of over 20 years.
she attended ohio state university
Jen attended The Ohio State University, where she met her husband.
The Tennessean said she noticed Mike in class and made her first move, obtaining Mike’s phone number through her professor.
She graduated in 1998 with a bachelor’s degree in dental hygiene.
In April 2016, the couple donated $75,000 to their alma mater’s Woody Hayes Athletic Center renovation project, according to an OSU press release. The funds were used to upgrade offices, team locker rooms, athletic training facilities, soccer equipment rooms, team meeting rooms, and improve lounge areas for student-athletes.
“We are excited to make this gift to the university,” Mike said. “Ohio State University has had a tremendous impact on my wife and I’s lives. The more we talked about it, the more it became clear to me that it was the right thing to do.”
she is an athlete
Jen played volleyball at Ohio State University from 1993 to 1996 and was an excellent athlete.
She was a two-time AVCA All-District selection, as well as two-time All-Big Ten and Academic All-Big Ten selections.
Mike played football at OSU, where they likely bonded as student-athletes.
He was also an outstanding player. At OSU, he was a two-time All-American, three-time All-Big Ten, and two-time Academic All-Big Ten.
She married Mike in 1999
Jen and Mike married in 1999 after Mike began playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
In 2024, the couple celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary with a 10-day trip to Italy, according to The Athletic.
He also made a rare comment about Jen in an article published in January 2025, saying, “We feel like we miss each other when we’re not together.”
Mike acknowledged his long marriage to Jen when he was introduced as the head coach of the New England Patriots in 2025. “I want to thank Jen for being with me on this journey for so long,” Mike told reporters at the time.
they have two sons
Jen and Mike have two sons. Tyler was born on June 24, 2000 and Carter was born on November 20, 2001.
Mike revealed at a press conference in January 2018 that he missed Carter’s birth.
“I’m not proud to say this, but I just want to talk about my wife,” he said. “She gave birth to Carter. I was at practice and she was in Ohio so I missed it. He came early and flipped out. They had to take her.”
“I was playing soccer and she was having a baby, so I showed up four hours late,” he continued. “I love her to death. She’s been through a lot and she understands this league.”
Mike also thanked his sons.
“They’ve been around NFL locker rooms since they were born,” he noted.
Not surprisingly, his sons also became student-athletes.
Tyler attended Boston University and played college football. He currently serves as a coaching assistant for the Boston College football program, working closely with the offensive line.
Meanwhile, Carter played baseball at Wabash Valley College and Tennessee Tech University.
Mike admits he had ‘difficult’ conversations with family after Russini photo scandal
Mike broke his silence on April 21 after Russini resigned from her position as The Athletic’s senior NFL insider amid the paper’s investigation (though she insisted she had done nothing inappropriate).
The coach admitted to having “difficult conversations” with his family during a pre-NFL Draft press conference at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
“We believe that to be successful on and off the field, you have to make the right decisions, and that includes me. It starts with me,” he said.
“We never want our actions to have a negative impact on the team. We never want to be a distraction. There are comments and questions that I have answered for and with the team, but we will keep them private and to ourselves.”
He also described the situation as a “personal and private matter.”
“I care deeply about this football team and am excited to coach them,” he said. “I also know that I’m going to attack each day with humility and focus.”
“What I can promise you is that my family, this organization, this team, the staff, the coaches, and most importantly, the fans, will give me the best going forward,” he concluded. “That’s something I know and I’m excited to do.”
