Jon Gruden Resigns After More Racist and Homophobic Emails Surfaces

The Jon Gruden experience is over after four years in a 10-year contract.

During Monday Night Football, Jon Gruden resigned from his position as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders hours after more emails surfaced from the New York Times detailing homophobic and misogynistic remarks.

“I have resigned as Head Coach of the Las Vegas Raiders,” Gruden said in a statement issued by the team on Twitter. “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.”

Mark Davis, the owner of the Raiders, said in a statement on Twitter that he had accepted the resignation.

The shocking end to Gruden’s tenure as a head coach came within a week after the first email from the Wall Street Journal came to light Friday where he used a racist trope against the NFL’s Executive Director of the Players Association DeMaurice Smith back in 2011 when he was working for ESPN. After their loss over the weekend to the Chicago Bears, Gruden was asked about the email and he repeatedly apologize, claiming he wasn’t a racist and that he went “too far.”

In the new emails that the NYT reported about on Monday, Gruden sent more disparaging emails from his personal email to former Washington Football Team President Bruce Allen through the team’s account. The emails were discovered in an ongoing workplace misconduct investigation with the Football Team. Some comments in the new emails were directed at commissioner Roger Goodell, calling him a “faggot” and a “clueless anti football pussy.” Gruden also went as far a denouncing homosexual players in the NFL with the Michael Sam situation and women refereeing. He also continued showing hints of racism by saying now free agent Eric Reid should have been fired when he was protesting the national anthem. There were a lot more disturbing comments that can be found in the reports found by the NYT.

Gruden did not offer any other comments about the situation.

As the Raider try to regroup they have placed special teams coach Rich Bisaccia as interim coach. They are on a two-game losing streak and they will need players in the locker room to rally the team if they are going to make a playoff run. 

As for Gruden, it is hard to imagine him being employed with the NFL or any sports media group anytime in the near future. The once voice of Monday Night Football and savior for the Raiders has now found himself without a job and his reputation forever damaged.