Just a few days ago, the news of a racially insensitive email written by Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden caused the widespread condemnation of him around the league.
Today, in a stunning turn of events, new emails obtained by the NFL written by Gruden and shared with the Raiders have forced Gruden to resign as head coach.
Late last week, an email written by Gruden in 2011 came to light wherein Gruden had referred to NFLPA head as “rubber-lipped,” a phrase Gruden played off as referring to Smith being a liar; though it’s easy to see why some would see it as a racially insensitive remark.Â
Today’s emails that were revealed are potentially worse, with Gruden blasting the league’s inclusion of female referees and denouncing the players kneeling to protest the national anthem before games. Those emails were sent to Bruce Allen of the Washington Football Team while Gruden was a color commentator on Monday Night Football, according to the New York Times.
Gruden also apparently disagreed with pressure brought by the league on Jeff Fisher to draft the openly gay Michael Sam and referred to commissioner Roger Goodell with a homophobic slur. In addition, Gruden criticized the NFL for its attempts to reduce concussions.
With all this coming to public view, Gruden met with Raiders owner Mark Davis and his staff at Raiders headquarters on Monday evening and informed them of his decision to resign. Defensive coordinator Gus Bradley would’ve been a logical choice given his past experience and rapport with the players. However, it appears that special teams coach Rich Bisaccia will replace Gruden in the interim.
This move could also have long-reaching repercussions from Mike Mayock’s role with the team to potential contract extensions for Derek Carr. But the image of the Raiders has been tainted with Gruden’s comments, and this team with such a long history of diversity and inclusion must now work to distance themselves from Gruden and his legacy.
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*Top Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images