Jon Gruden sues the NFL and Roger Goodell

doubledragon · November 12, 2021 4:59PM

Jon Gruden is suing the NFL and Roger Goodell saying they sought to ruin his career and reputation.

Jon Gruden sues NFL and commissioner Roger Goodell

(CNN)Former Raiders coach Jon Gruden alleges in a lawsuit that the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell sought to destroy his career and reputation through a malicious and orchestrated campaign.

The lawsuit was filed Thursday in Clark County, Nevada District Court.

Gruden resigned in October as head coach of the Raiders after reports emerged of him using homophobic, racist and misogynistic language in emails while he worked as an ESPN analyst.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell remains steadfast on not releasing more from Washington Football Team investigation

The questionable emails were uncovered as part of a league investigation into workplace misconduct at the Washington Football Team.

"The complaint alleges that the defendants selectively leaked Gruden's private correspondence to the Wall Street Journal and New York Times in order to harm Gruden's reputation and force him out of his job," Gruden's attorney Adam Hosmer-Henner said in a statement. "There is 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."

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy told CNN in a statement, "The allegations are entirely meritless and the NFL will vigorously defend against these claims."

The suit claims the NFL's actions have led to Gruden suffering from "severe financial damages and harm to his career and reputation."

Though the source of the leaked emails is unknown, the lawsuit claims they were leaked by the NFL and alleges the league deliberately sought to hurt Gruden while other details of the investigation into the Washington football team were kept secret. McCarthy told CNN in October the league had no plans to release more details from the investigation for confidentiality reasons.

"Out of 650,000 emails obtained months earlier in connection with the investigation into workplace misconduct by the Washington Football Team, Defendants weaponized a small subset that were authored by Gruden prior to his hiring by the Raiders. Defendants then purposefully leveraged these emails to cause the termination of Gruden's coaching contract, endorsements, and sponsorships," the lawsuit says.

Investigation came after accusations against Washington team management
In July, the NFL announced it fined the Washington organization $10 million after an independent investigation found the club's work environment was "highly unprofessional," especially for women.

The fine cames after 15 former female employees and two journalists who covered the team accused team staffers of sexual harassment and verbal abuse. The club launched an investigation last July, which the NFL took over in August.

How an investigation of the Washington Football Team led to the resignation of the Las Vegas Raiders' head coach
In October, the Wall Street Journal reported Gruden used racially insensitive language to describe NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith in a 2011 email.

Then the New York Times reported it reviewed more emails and found Gruden denounced women being employed as on-field officials, a team drafting an openly gay player, and the tolerance for national anthem protesters.

Many of Gruden's emails, covering a seven-year period, were sent to Bruce Allen, the Washington team's then-president who was fired in December 2019, according to the Times.

A league source, just before Gruden resigned, confirmed the accuracy of the Times' story to CNN.

Gruden was one of the NFL's highest-paid coaches, having signed a 10-year, $100 million contract with the Raiders, according to salary tracking website Spotrac.

He first coached the Raiders from 1998 to 2001, then won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2002. At the time, Gruden was 39 and then, the youngest coach to win the Super Bowl.

He left the Bucs in 2008 and became a football analyst for ESPN and his messages were sent while he was working for ESPN as a color analyst during "Monday Night Football," the Times reported.

Hydrant · November 12, 2021 5:48PM

Good for him.

erikthredd · November 12, 2021 6:39PM

I'm with Hydrant,good for Gruden and hopefully he wins his case. He had nothing to do with that WFT investigation yet he got screwed with losing his job. What happened with Gruden is the exact reason why Tom Brady wouldn't hand over access to his own cell phone during the Deflategate investigation.

Hydrant · November 12, 2021 7:36PM

.. Maybe later.

Steven59 · November 12, 2021 8:04PM

But didn't Gruden voluntarily say "No Mas" and resigned as it was "Detrimental to the team" if he remained head coach?

doubledragon · November 13, 2021 1:37AM

Roger Goodell was definitely out to get Jon Gruden, I don't like Roger Goodell, I'm putting him on my list, right above Jeff Bezos, but still below Mark Zuckerberg.

1951WheatiesPremium · November 13, 2021 2:33AM

It makes you think…

…if someone combed through my emails, how bad would I look, doesn’t it? I don’t think I’m a bad person but take a few phrases out of context or quote me from some of my youthful, angry emails. 😳

I do think that this was a targeted attack; perhaps designed to deflect from Washington, since this seems to be the bigger story from the investigation; the sexual harassment investigation by the Washington FT has certainly faded to the background.

My guess is the NFL will settle.

perkdog · November 13, 2021 3:59AM

Good, and I hope he wins as well as makes a complete fool out of Goddell

jay0791 · November 13, 2021 6:04AM

DDDD
Double Dat DD

doubledragon · November 13, 2021 8:18AM

Yes, and Barstool Sports knows how weird Zuckerberg is too, he even earned the number 1 seed in their weirdo ncaa tournament.

Tabe · November 13, 2021 10:58AM

I think the NFL was probably out to get Gruden but.... so what? The emails are legit. They're not privileged communication. It's not illegal for the NFL to release them. What exactly is Gruden claiming here? "If you hadn't shown the world that I write racist, homophobic emails, I wouldn't have voluntarily quit my job?" I don't see how he has a case.

But I sure hope it goes to trial with tons of discovery made public.

Come to think of it, that's what Gruden is angling for - a settlement so the NFL can avoid discovery.

Hydrant · November 13, 2021 11:07AM

Babylon Bee. Check it out. Click search.... Aaron Rodgers first and then
Gruden. No comment here......except...... they give DD a run for his money. 😂

doubledragon · November 13, 2021 11:25AM

@Hydrant said:
Babylon Bee. Check it out. Click search.... Rodgers and then
Gruden. No comment here......except...... they give DD a run for his money. 😂

But if we remove every coach and player that has ever said a bad word from the NFL, all that will remain is?

Hydrant · November 13, 2021 11:37AM

DD, do what I suggested...... Don't ask questions...... You will laugh your kiester off. Do it!........LOMBARDI AVE.???😂😂

doubledragon · November 13, 2021 11:43AM

@Hydrant said:
DD, do what I suggested...... Don't ask questions...... You will laugh your kiester off. Do it!........LOMBARDI AVE.???😂😂

I'll check it out, but I still think an NFL with only Tim Tebow would be pretty dull.

Hydrant · November 13, 2021 11:49AM

Babylon Bee. Click on the three little lines in the upper left hand corner. Go to search. Type in Aaron Rodgers. Don't chicken out....man up.

doubledragon · November 13, 2021 12:14PM

@Hydrant said:
Babylon Bee. Click on the three little lines in the upper left hand corner. Go to search. Type in Aaron Rodgers. Don't chicken out....man up.

I checked it out, very interesting indeed, there certainly are some wild and crazy stories on that website!