Random Things and Random Thoughts by Lindsie Rodgers · Lindsie Rodgers

Random Things and Random Thoughts season 2 episode 15: Lindsie flips out (part 2)

April 10, 2026·1 hr 28 min·6 clips

A New York Times reporter and a Patriots head coach are caught in a hotel scandal, revealed by the New York Post.

1. Random Things and Random Thoughts host Lindsie Rodgers delivers a live-reaction solo episode defending Philadelphia sports while reacting to the Page 6 exclusive on Mike Verbal and Diana Rossini. 2. Lindsie Rodgers is the sole host; no guests appear. She identifies as a passionate Philadelphia Eagles, Flyers, and 76ers fan based on her commentary throughout. 3. The episode's central argument is that NY Times reporter Diana Rossini has credibility problems that should discredit her negative coverage of Eagles players, now amplified by the Sedona scandal photos. 4. Page 6 obtained exclusive photos showing Patriots head coach Mike Verbal, 50, and NY Times Senior NFL Insider Diana Rossini, 43, holding hands, hugging at sunset, and sitting in a hot tub at the adults-only Amara resort in Sedona, Arizona on March 28th. 5. Three eyewitnesses contradicted Verbal and Rossini's claims that they were part of a larger group; one witness said directly 'no, he was with a girl.' 6. The Amara resort bungalows cost up to $2,160 per night and the resort's website boasts of 158 proposals and thousands of honeymoons, which Lindsie notes as relevant context. 7. Verbal had attended an NFL scouting event at Arizona State University in Tempe on March 27th before traveling to Sedona, and then went to an NFL Competition Committee meeting at the Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix afterward. 8. The Athletic's executive editor Steven Ginsburg defended Rossini in a statement calling the photos 'misleading and lacking context,' which Lindsie rejects given the eyewitness accounts. 9. In 2015, Washington Commanders GM Scott McClellan's wife Jessica publicly tweeted that Rossini was getting inside NFL information from 'my husband, his new side chick Diana,' a tweet she later deleted and apologized for. 10. Rossini joined The Athletic from ESPN in 2023 and holds the Senior NFL Insider title; she previously covered the Tennessee Titans when Verbal was their head coach in 2018, which Lindsie suggests is when their relationship may have begun. 11. Rossini married Shake Shack executive Kevin Goldschmidt in 2020 and marked their 2022 anniversary on Instagram writing 'it's you and only you for me forever'; Verbal and wife Jen celebrated 25 years of marriage in 2024. 12. Lindsie argues that Rossini wrote 'hit piece garbage rumors' about Eagles wide receiver AJ Brown throughout the NFL season, citing AJ Brown's own public statements on the Dudes on Dudes podcast as evidence. 13. Multiple current and former Eagles players publicly defended quarterback Jalen Hurts against hit pieces citing anonymous sources, including Jason Kelsey, according to the Instagram account No Context Philly. 14. Dan Orlovsky, whose son Madden is a declared Eagles fan who received a video message and gifts from the Eagles Autism Foundation, publicly stated that the negative articles about Hurts 'were not necessary.' 15. Robert Griffin III and his wife Grete discussed Jalen Hurts on their podcast Out of Pocket, with Griffin saying the anonymous-source hit pieces were not warranted and that the sources 'should get beated.' 16. Lindsie argues the media attacks on Hurts are partly explained by the fact that he has not married a celebrity, contrasting coverage of Josh Allen, whose wife is famous, and Travis Kelce, whose fiancee Taylor Swift draws attention. 17. The episode is delivered in a fast-paced, highly personal solo commentary style with Lindsie simultaneously watching the Flyers playoff game live, reacting audibly to goals and penalties as they happen. 18. The tone is passionate and combative throughout, with Lindsie calling for Rossini's firing, Ginsburg's firing, Verbal's termination by the Patriots, and public use of community notes to flag Rossini's articles. 19. Philly sports fans and followers of NFL media gossip will find this episode most engaging. 20. Listeners uninterested in Philadelphia sports tribalism or celebrity gossip about sports journalists will likely not enjoy this episode.

As heard by us

A breathless Philly sports rant where the noise is part of the point.

It opens as a blunt Philadelphia sports rant, starting with the Flyers' push to stay in third and swinging into the Stanley Cup race before landing on the New York Post fallout around Alberto Rodriguez, A.J. Brown, Jalen Hurts, and Diana Rossini. The draw is the heat.

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Why you'd press play

You want a Philly sports rant that keeps crashing into live-game chaos and NFL media drama.

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