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Jon Gruden resigned from his position as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders in October 2021 after it was reported that he had used a racial term towards NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith in an email back in 2011.
The email was revealed as part of an unconnected workplace inquiry into then-Washington Football Team, now the Washington Commanders.
In a recent interview with JoeBucsFan.com, the head coach’s agent, Bob Lamonte, said that the NFL put out a “hit job” on the former Las Vegas head coach.
“It took a very bad toll on him. Jon will tell you he’s a boring guy. The guy watches films all day, that’s what he does. He’s basically a football junkie and you took it away from him. His family was destroyed, his wife’s answering questions, his son works for the team.”
Lamonte also stated that Gruden is looking to become head coach once again:
“I think Jon looks younger, happier, and better now. He’s an infinitely wealthy person and the irony of this lawsuit is that everyone says he’ll make a fortune. He doesn’t really need the money. All Jon Gruden wants is his life back — and he’s going to get it back.”
Gruden started out his head coaching career with the then-Oakland Raiders for four seasons (1998–2001). In 2002, Oakland shipped the head coach in an unprecedented trade to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he spent seven seasons on the sidelines.
Gruden led the Buccaneers to their first Super Bowl victory in franchise history in the 2002 season, defeating his former team. The head coach was let go by Tampa Bay following the 2008 season after going 9-7.
After a nine-year stint in broadcasting with ESPN, Gruden made his return to the Raiders in January 2018. Prior to his resignation in Week Five last season, he had a 22–31 record the second time around with the Raiders.
His chances of coaching in the NFL again could be slim to none, given his lawsuit against the league.
Jon Gruden's lawsuit versus the league
Lamonte said that a couple of emails that Jon Gruden sent to former Washington executive Bruce Allen were divulged to the media. This was when everything else about the inquiry of Washington owner Daniel Snyder’s franchise was greatly veiled in secrecy. Lamonte stated:
“This wasn’t good for anybody. That’s why he ended up suing the NFL and [Commissioner Roger] Goodell — because everyone knows it was wrong. You have 650,000 e-mails and his six were picked out . . . and he wasn’t even in the league. He prevailed in court and he will prevail again.”
Gruden won in court on the initial question of whether the case will be required to go to arbitration. Without a doubt, the league will appeal that ruling for as long as humanly possible, postponing the case for months or even years.
At some point, if the case stays in court, the name of the individual who leaked the email will be uncovered.
Even though Gruden thinks that Goodell was the leaker, others feel it was Snyder. The universe of potential suspects is small, since not many people are privy to the information. Either way, we’ll see how long this lawsuit will last and if we get the chance to find the person responsible for the leaked email.
If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Pro Football Talk and H/T Sportskeeda.
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