On Friday afternoon, Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden found himself in the news for all of the wrong reasons.
Over the past few months, the NFL has been investigating workplace misconduct within the Washington Football Team. Over that time, the league reviewed over 650,000 emails.
Unfortunately for Gruden, an email to Washington general manager Bruce Allen featured some pretty nasty language. Venting about NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith, the head coach used a racist trope.
“Dumboriss Smith has lips the size of michellin tires,” he wrote, per The Wall Street Journal.
The story immediately went viral on social media, with fans calling for Gruden’s job. The bulk of the response calls Gruden’s actions “gross” and suggests the head coach should be relieved of his duties with the Raiders.
This is pretty gross. https://t.co/0gIQ0pmIeB
— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) October 8, 2021
Others couldn’t waste the opportunity for a joke. They suggested this will take some of the heat off of Jacksonville Jaguars coach Urban Meyer, who found himself in the headlines for all the wrong reasons earlier this week.
Jon Gruden refusing to be upstaged by Urban Meyer when it comes to burning his own credibility to cinders
— Drew Magary (@drewmagary) October 8, 2021
Urban Meyer: “Man, what a week.”
Jon Gruden: “Hold my Corona.”— Andrew Bucholtz (@AndrewBucholtz) October 8, 2021
Gruden offered an apology for his comments.
“I’m really sorry,” the Las Vegas Raiders head coach said in response to the story. “I was upset and I used a horrible way of explaining it. I don’t think he’s dumb and I don’t think he’s a liar.”
Gruden said he doesn’t “have a racist bone” in his body.
It’s unclear if Gruden will receive a punishment for his comments. The NFL called Gruden’s email “appalling, abhorrent, and wholly contrary to the NFL’s values.”
Meanwhile, the Raiders have not yet commented on the matter.
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