Tag: Gruden

Sep 19, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden looks at his play chart against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the fourth quarter at Heinz Field. Las Vegas won 26-17. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Ex-Raiders coach Jon Gruden hired as Milano Seamen advisor

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Former Raiders head coach Jon Gruden is back in football, but nowhere near the NFL.

The 60-year-old Gruden was named an advisor of the European League of Football’s Milano Seamen in Italy in his first tull-time football role since he resigned November 2021 during a firestorm over the contents of inflammatory emails he claimed were leaked by the NFL.

“We’re excited to announce that American football legend, Jon Gruden, will work with us as advisor. Gruden won in 2002 Super Bowl with Tampa Bay. Gruden will help us to improve our organization in every aspect. He already started to work with our coaching staff,” Milano said in a statement on Wednesday.

Gruden’s lawsuit against the NFL is ongoing in Nevada. The NFL is attempting to have the suit thrown out by courts on the basis that Gruden didn’t use the contract-mandated arbitration process.

In January, reports surfaced that Gruden could be in line to join the New Orleans Saints as part of Dennis Allen’s staff.

Until the suit is settled, it’s unlikely Gruden will coach or work in the NFL.

Gruden accused the NFL of leaking emails he wrote to then-Washington Commanders president Bruce Allen from 2011-18 that were rife with racist and homophobic remarks and highly critical of Goodell. The leaked emails stoked public outrage against Gruden, eventually leading to his resignation as head coach of the Raiders — an outcome he said the league manipulated.

–Field Level Media

Sep 19, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden looks on from the sidelines against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the second quarter at Heinz Field. Las Vegas won 26-17. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Nevada judge rejects dismissal, Gruden vs. NFL case cleared for trial

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Former Las Vegas Raiders coach Jon Gruden’s case against the NFL and commissioner Roger Goodell can move forward, a Nevada judge ruled Wednesday.

District Court Judge Nancy Allf also denied a Motion to Compel the case into binding arbitration under the terms of Gruden’s NFL contract. Attorneys for the NFL and Goodell presented their positions separately on each motion, clearing the case to proceed via trial.

Gruden was present in court but did not take questions, offering a brief comment while exiting the courtroom: “We are going to let the process take care of itself. Good luck to the Raiders. Go Raiders.”

Barring other issues or a settlement between parties, moving forward with the case opens the possibility of the legal discovery phase and bring public parts, or all of the investigation, into the Washington NFL franchise.

Gruden resigned as head coach of the Raiders in October following backlash from racially-charged and insensitive email messages. Gruden claims the messages that were all dated to previous years were leaked by the NFL as part of an “orchestrated” and “malicious” campaign.

Gruden filed his lawsuit in the district court of Nevada’s Clark County in November.

The two-time Raiders coach had six seasons remaining on a 10-year contract worth $100 million.

Messages published by the Wall Street Journal and other outlets were captured by the NFL as part of an investigation into the culture of the Commanders — then known as the Washington Football Team. Many of the messages reported to be from Gruden were sent to team president Bruce Allen, who also had roots with the Raiders and worked with Gruden in Oakland.

Following Gruden’s resignation, Raiders owner Mark Davis called for the NFL to release all details related to the WFT investigation. Commissioner Roger Goodell said the NFL had no plans to make the breadth of the findings or additional email messages public.

The New York Times published details of a series of messages from Gruden with misogynistic and anti-gay language.

The NFL’s position in the Nevada filing points to Gruden not denying the legitimacy of the messages or claiming that they were somehow altered or edited.

“Gruden does not, and cannot, dispute that he wrote the published emails. He does not, and cannot, dispute that he sent those emails to multiple parties,” the NFL filing states. “Nor does he claim that they were somehow altered or edited and that the repugnant views espoused in them were not in fact expressed by him. Instead, Gruden filed the instant complaint against the NFL and the commissioner, painting himself as the victim in a fictional story and seeking money through baseless claims against the NFL.”

–Field Level Media

Sep 13, 2021; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden watches game action against the Baltimore Ravens during the first half at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

NFL files to dismiss ‘baseless’ Jon Gruden lawsuit

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Lawyers for the NFL filed a motion to dismiss Jon Gruden’s lawsuit against the league, calling the claims “baseless” in a Nevada court request.

Gruden resigned as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders in October following backlash from racist and insensitive email messages. Gruden claims the messages that were all dated to previous years were leaked by the NFL as part of an “orchestrated” and “malicious” campaign.

Gruden filed in district court in Nevada’s Clark County in November.

The two-time Raiders coach had six seasons remaining on a 10-year contract worth $100 million.

Messages published by the Wall Street Journal and other outlets were captured by the NFL as part of an investigation into the culture of the Washington Football Team. Many of the messages reported to be from Gruden were sent to team president Bruce Allen, who also had roots with the Raiders and worked with Gruden in Oakland.

Following Gruden’s resignation, Raiders owner Mark Davis called for the NFL to release all details related to the WFT investigation. Commissioner Roger Goodell said the NFL had no plans to make the breadth of the findings or additional email messages public.

The New York Times published details of a series of messages from Gruden with misogynistic and anti-gay language.

The NFL’s position in the Nevada filing points to Gruden not denying the legitimacy of the messages or claiming that they were somehow altered or edited.

“Gruden does not, and cannot, dispute that he wrote the published emails. He does not, and cannot, dispute that he sent those emails to multiple parties,” the NFL filing states. “Nor does he claim that they were somehow altered or edited and that the repugnant views espoused in them were not in fact expressed by him. Instead, Gruden filed the instant complaint against the NFL and the commissioner, painting himself as the victim in a fictional story and seeking money through baseless claims against the NFL.”

Attorneys for Gruden are arguing “no explanation or justification for why Gruden’s emails were the only ones made public out of the 650,000 emails collected in the NFL’s investigation of the Washington Football Team or for why the emails were held for months before being released in the middle of the Raiders’ season.”

–Field Level Media

Dec 26, 2020; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) with head coach Jon Gruden against the Miami Dolphins at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Derek Carr confesses gamut of emotions since Jon Gruden resignation

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Derek Carr continues to compute the emotional toll of the past week as the Las Vegas Raiders prepare to play the Denver Broncos in a meaningful AFC West game on Sunday.

After a post-mortem of his performance in a loss to the Chicago Bears with Jon Gruden on Monday, Carr learned hours later that the team was without a head coach. Gruden resigned in a meeting with owner Mark Davis as a series of inflammatory emails in which Gruden disparaged individuals with racist and anti-gay rhetoric became public.

Carr said he felt anger, empathy and sick to his stomach over the past week.

“A lot of emotions obviously,” Carr said. “Didn’t see all of this coming. Caught us all by surprise. There will be a day for those feelings. But from an emotional standpoint, I’ve got a job to do.”

No player on the Raiders’ roster spent more time with Gruden.

General manager Mike Mayock said Wednesday Rich Bisaccia was elevated to interim head coach because he’s “the best leader of men” Mayock has been around.

“I feel it’s important to acknowledge the significance of this moment,” Bisaccia said on Wednesday. “Coach Gruden gave me a chance to coach in the National Football League and I’ll always be appreciative of that. That being said, we all have a responsibility here. We have to be accountable to our words and our actions. No one person is bigger than the Raiders shield. The Raiders have always stood for diversity, inclusion and social justice. It’s important to live those ideals and carry them into the future. We can’t change the past, but we can do more to maybe make tomorrow better.”

Carr will be playing for a fifth head coach in his NFL career since entering the NFL in 2014 while still coming to terms with the brutal realities of the messages unearthed from Gruden.

“Are conversations still happening? Absolutely. Another part of being a leader is making sure guys are OK,” Carr said. “This is the biggest story in sports right now and … you turn the TV on and it’s what’s on. I’m sad for our organization, I’m sad for our fans.”

Carr wondered aloud if Gruden was the only NFL coach or general manager with skeletons on his hard drive.

“I love the man — but hate the sin,” a reflective and tense Carr said Wednesday of Gruden. “If we started opening up everyone’s private emails and texts, people would start sweating a little bit. But maybe that’s what they should do for all coaches, GMs and owners from now on. You have to open up everything, see what happens.”

Bisaccia said the Raiders, 3-2, are a good team and there is a lot of season remaining with goals “still alive.” Bisaccia said he still considers Gruden a friend, but they haven’t had dialogue since Monday.

“No one wants to be a head coach in this particular situation. No one wants to be put in front of this in these particular circumstances,” he said. “But it’s an incredible opportunity. … We’re looking forward to the opportunity to play ball again.”

–Field Level Media

Sep 19, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib (94) reacts on the sidelines against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the second quarter at Heinz Field. Las Vegas won 26-17. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Raiders grant Carl Nassib personal day to deal with Jon Gruden fallout

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Defensive end Carl Nassib was granted his request for a personal day, Las Vegas Raiders general manager Mike Mayock said Wednesday.

Mayock said he had multiple conversations with Nassib, with whom he has met three times, since the email history of the team’s shamed head coach Jon Gruden came to light last week.

“He requested a personal day today,” Mayock said of Nassib. “He just said he’s got a lot to process, there’s a lot that’s been going on the last few days, and of course we support that request.”

Nassib became the first openly gay active NFL player when he made the announcement in June.

Among the controversial email messages the Wall Street Journal and New York Times published was a reference to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell that included an anti-gay slur.

Gruden used a different anti-gay slur while writing about Michael Sam, the first openly gay player drafted by an NFL team. Sam was selected by the then-St. Louis Rams in the seventh round in 2014 but never played a regular-season game in the league.

–Field Level Media

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) celebrates his 74 yard touchdown pass to Marquez Valdes-Scantling with Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur during the 4th quarter of the Green Bay Packers 42-24 win over the Oakland Raiders at Lambeau Field in Green Bay on Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019. Photo by Mike De Sisti/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Packers21 4373

Aaron Rodgers: Jon Gruden situation is teachable moment for NFL

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Aaron Rodgers read the details of the email exchanges that prompted Jon Gruden to resign as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. Now, the reigning NFL Most Valuable Player said he hopes the league uses the incident to educate team personnel.

“It was surprising to see that the thing went so quickly, but I think that was probably the best decision for all parties involved,” Rodgers said on the Pat McAfee Show. “Hopefully we can all as a league learn and grow from this. Hopefully it puts people on notice who have some of those same opinions. Like, ‘Hey man, it’s time to grow and evolve and change and connect. That s— doesn’t fly.’”

Rodgers said he takes pride in kindness and inclusiveness evident in his own locker room. In his 17th season in Green Bay, Rodgers said the league has evolved and he’s unaware of other coaches and personnel who might share Gruden’s opinions that were critical of minorities, homosexuals and women.

“I know that there’s opinions similar to that, but I feel they’re few and far between,” Rodgers said Tuesday. “The player and the coach of today is a more empathetic, advanced, progressive, loving, connected type of person. I’m proud of the kind of locker room we have. We need to allow people to grow and change, but those opinions don’t have a place in the game.”

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin worked with Gruden in Tampa Bay, where the Buccaneers on Tuesday announced the removal of Gruden from the team’s Ring of Honor.

Tomlin praised Gruden’s ability as a teacher and mentor during an offseason interview. But the gravity of the Gruden news last week weighed heavily on Tomlin.

“I’m saddened by it,” said Tomlin, who was a defensive assistant for Gruden’s Super Bowl-winning team in Tampa following the 2002 season. “I’m saddened for the Raiders organization. I’m saddened for the people that were offended by it. I’m saddened for Coach Gruden. It’s a sad commentary, and that’s really the only opinion I care to share at this juncture.”

Multiple former players, from Keyshawn Johnson to Willie McGinest, said they “weren’t surprised” by the Gruden situation.

The Raiders have not publicly commented since Gruden’s resignation on Monday night.

–Field Level Media

Feb 22, 2020; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis and head coach John Gruden attend the WBC heavyweight title bout between Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Raiders owner decries protocol punishment, files appeal

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The Las Vegas Raiders are appealing the punishments they received from the NFL for violating COVID-19 protocols, with team owner Mark Davis taking sharp exception to the sanctions.

The league took away the Raiders’ 2021 sixth-round draft pick, fined the club $500,000 and fined head coach Jon Gruden $150,000 for what a source told ESPN were “brazen and repeated violations of (COVID-19) protocols.”

Davis responded in a Friday interview with ESPN: “The fines are draconian, but we will appeal them. Outside the organization, people have the wrong impression about the Raiders. We take it seriously. It’s unfortunate that certain things outside the protocol are the things being focused on, rather than the positive steps we’ve taken as an organization. …

“Jon and those guys are working their asses off every day. But at the same time, (the NFL) feels we’ve failed some of those mandates.”

Yahoo Sports and NFL Network reported Thursday that the punishments stemmed from right tackle Trent Brown’s positive COVID-19 test late last month. ESPN added that the sanctions also took into account Gruden regularly failing to wear a facemask, numerous Raiders players attending a large indoor charity event in September and the club allowing an unauthorized person into the locker room after a Sept. 21 win over the New Orleans Saints.

The Raiders previously were fined $250,000 and Gruden was fined $100,000 for his failure to wear a mask during the New Orleans game. Per ESPN, the Raiders’ fine total for coronavirus-related violations is nearly $1.2 million.

Brown originally went on the reserve/COVID-19 list on Oct. 21, prompting the club to send the entire offensive line home while launching contact tracing.

Brown was ready to return to the field Sunday at Cleveland, but he ended up hospitalized after air entered his bloodstream during a pregame IV. He landed back on the reserve/COVID-19 list on Wednesday.

The Raiders also ran afoul of the NFL when quarterback Derek Carr, tight end Jason Witten and several other players attended a Sept. 28 fundraising event hosted by tight end Darren Waller’s foundation in Henderson, Nev. Photos were posted online of players, without masks, mingling with event guests.

Davis told the Las Vegas Review-Journal after the fact, “We obviously take responsibility for this. You don’t like seeing this. I don’t know that it’s actually been built into our memories that you have to wear a mask. Our organization takes it very seriously.”

The NFL issued $350,000 to the Titans late last month after the Tennessee organization had 24 positive COVID-19 tests. However, even though two Titans games were postponed, Tennessee wasn’t docked a draft pick.

–Field Level Media