NFL sports writer Crissy Froyd has brought forward serious public claims regarding professional football culture, alleging that at least 50 players and coaches made unwanted romantic advances toward her throughout her career, including when she was underage.
Froyd shared these details during a recent appearance on The Howard Eskin Show while discussing the broader dynamics between league personnel and media members. She noted that some of the encounters occurred when she was 16 years old, adding that she typically tried to dodge the conversations because the situations made her uncomfortable.
Crissy Froyd drops bombshell claims
The allegations surface during an ongoing period of scrutiny surrounding relationships within sports journalism. Froyd was terminated from her writing role at USA Today in April 2026 after publicly commenting on the alleged relationship between New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel and reporter Dianna Russini.
Howard Eskin asked, “How many players or coaches tried to hit on you?”
Froyd replied, “At least 50, I can’t even count. Like I said, I’ve been doing this for like 12 years, so at least 50, including when I was underage. But I will give them the benefit of the doubt that maybe they didn’t know that.”
When asked about her response to the advances, Froyd says, “It was obviously very uncomfortable, especially when some of them were players from the NFL when I was about 16. So, I was just the age of consent in multiple states, and I didn’t know what to do because I looked older than I was, and so I just kind of tried to not say anything, you know, kind of like dodge it and just kind of leave the conversation.”
Following her dismissal, Froyd has written about what she describes as systemic ethical issues within NFL media circles, claiming that multiple female journalists have disclosed having relationships with league staff and head coaches while actively covering teams.
The situation follows weeks of intense coverage after photographs emerged of Vrabel and Russini together in Arizona, which led to Russini’s resignation from her position amid an internal outlet investigation. While Russini’s professional future remains uncertain, the Patriots organization has continued to support Vrabel, who briefly stepped away during the 2026 NFL Draft to attend family counseling. Additionally, league officials have stated that the NFL will not launch an official investigation into the matter, explicitly treating the situation as a personal issue.
When questioned during the broadcast about the specific identities of the individuals involved in her allegations, Froyd declined to provide names to avoid legal disputes.
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