Jon Gruden resigned as coach of the Las Vegas Raiders football team following revelations about emails he sent over the years with offensive comments.
After Gruden informed his staff that he planned to resign, he spoke with Raiders owner Mark Davis about his decision, NFL Network reporter Tom Pelissero tweeted Monday evening.
Jon Gruden spoke with #Raiders owner Mark Davis a short time ago to inform Davis of his decision. It’s official. Gruden is out in Las Vegas. https://t.co/zkzkVryyfe
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 12, 2021
“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,” Gruden was quoted in a tweet by the Raiders on Monday evening.
“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
Gruden signed a 10-year, $100 million contract in 2018 to be the head coach of the Raiders.
His departure comes after it was revealed in recent days that he sent emails with racist, homophobic, and misogynistic comments while he worked for ESPN as an analyst.
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The emails, the latest batch reported by the New York Times on Monday, were discovered as part of workplace misconduct investigations into the Washington Football Team that his brother, Jay, was head coach from 2014 to 2019.
The first email that came to light was in 2011 when he used a racist trope to describe DeMaurice Smith, the head of the NFL Players Association.
“Dumboriss Smith has lips the size of michellin tires,” he said in a message to Bruce Allen, then-president of the team now called the Washington Football Team.
Gruden told the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the email last week, he was “sorry,” claiming the comment was made in a moment of frustration about a lockout that jeopardized the upcoming season. He insisted he did not have a “racial bone” in his body.
Smith, who is black, called the comment racist, adding, “I’m sorry my family has to see something like this, but I would rather they know. I will not let it define me.”
