Personal emails sent by Jon Gruden have ended his tenure as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. As first reported by NFL Network, Gruden resigned Monday from his head coach position.
“I have resigned as Head Coach of the Las Vegas Raiders,” Gruden said in a statement put out by the Raiders. “I love the Raiders and do not want to be a distraction. Thank you to all the players, coaches, staff, and fans of Raider Nation. I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt anyone.”
"I have resigned as Head Coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. I love the Raiders and do not want to be a distraction. Thank you to all the players, coaches, staff, and fans of Raider Nation. I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt anyone."
Jon Gruden
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) October 12, 2021
This past Friday, The Wall Street Journal reported an email that Gruden sent to Bruce Allen — the then-president of the Washington Redskins — now the Washington Football Team.
“Dumboriss Smith has lips the size of michellin tires,” Gruden wrote, according to the WSJ.
The email has caused an uproar in the NFL community and online, as it has been deemed as racist by many, including by the subject of the email.
After the NFL and the owner of the Las Vegas Raiders put out statements condemning the email, Gruden apologized to the media following the Raiders 20-9 loss to the Bears.
“I can’t remember a lot of the things that transpired 10 or 12 years ago, but I stand here in front of everybody apologizing. I don’t have an ounce of racism in me. I’m a guy that takes pride in leading people together. And I’ll continue to do that the rest of my life. And, again, I apologize to De Smith and anybody out there I have offended.”
Gruden’s players, including Josh Jacobs and Denzel Perryman — who are black — defended their coach.
“I let it go as soon as we walked out of the meeting room,” Perryman said. “I wasn’t focused on that. Still not focused on it. So, I mean, I don’t know what he said. I could care less, honestly. I don’t know how many years ago it was, but my main focus this week was on the Bears, not whatever he had going on.”
But the NFL was reportedly reviewing additional emails sent by Gruden over the past decade, and a New York Times report said that the league found homophobic and misogynistic emails.
As reported by the Times, Gruden sent emails while he was working as an analyst for Monday Night Football to Allen and others regarding women referees in the NFL, homosexual players being drafted, and the topic of players protesting the national anthem.
According to the report, Gruden called NFL commissioner Roger Goodell a “fa****, and a “clueless anti football p****.” Goodell appears to be the subject of many emails, with Gruden using homophobic language when referring to the commissioner.
The emails were sent between 2011-2018, and included criticism of Goodell for his attempt to reduce concussions in the game of football, which Gruden reportedly felt was discouraging parents from allowing their children to play the game of football.
According to the Times, Gruden also felt that Goodell and the NFL should not have pressured the Rams to draft “queers,” a reference to Michael Sam.
Gruden reportedly felt that Eric Reid — a player known for kneeling during the National Anthem — should lose his job, and sent emails containing pictures of women dressed only in bikini bottoms.
Gruden also referred to then-vice president Biden as a “nervous clueless p****.”
Rich Bisaccia — assistant coach under Gruden — will serve as interim head coach of the Raiders.
Joe Morgan is the Sports Reporter for The Daily Wire. Most recently, Morgan covered the Clippers, Lakers, and the NBA for Sporting News. Send your sports questions to [email protected].
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Source: Dailywire
