Mike Vrabel Had 'Difficult Conversations' With Family, Team Amid Russini Drama

Mike Vrabel is finally addressing the humongous elephant in the room ... saying he's spent the past few weeks having "difficult conversations" with his loved ones and the New England Patriots amid his Dianna Russini scandal.

The head coach met with the media minutes ago ... and emphasized how he has to make good decisions -- and he never wants his actions to be a distraction or negatively impact the organization.

Vrabel said he's going to attack each day "with humility and focus" moving forward ... and he will be the best version of himself professionally and personally.

Vrabel claimed he did not want to speak out before talking to his players ... and while he did not name-drop Russini specifically, he called it a "personal and private matter."

"We believe in order to be successful, you have to make good decisions," Vrabel said. "That starts with me. You never want your actions to negatively affect the team ... or be the cause of a distraction."

"Those are comments and questions that I've answered for the team and with the team and we'll keep those private and to ourselves. I care deeply about this football team and I'm excited to coach them" -- Vrabel confidently declares and continues -- "I also know that I'm going to attack each day with humility and focus. And what I can promise you is that my family, this organization, the team, the staff, the coaches, everybody, our fans most importantly will get the best version of me going forward. And that's what I know. I'm excited to do that."

When Page Six initially posted the cozy pics of the coach and NFL insider, Vrabel scoffed at the notion they showed nothing but two friends hanging out.

Russini said there was a group of them together in Arizona ... but no proof has ever come out to back her story.