Photo: Al Messerschmidt/Getty
Jon Gruden has stepped down as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders in the wake of resurfaced emails in which he reportedly used racially charged, homophobic and profane language.
Gruden announced his resignationin a public statementon Monday.
“I love the Raiders and do not want to be a distraction,” he wrote. “Thank you to all the players, coaches, staff, and fans of Raider Nation. I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt anyone.”
Earlier on Monday,The New York Timesreported that Gruden sent numerous emails over seven years (during which he was a broadcaster for ESPN) that “casually and frequently” used homophobic language to refer to NFL officials and players.
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In one email, Gruden called the league’s commissioner, Roger Goodell, a “clueless anti football p—-” and insisted that he shouldn’t have pressured then-Rams head coach Jeff Fisher to draft “queers,” the newspaper reported.
In another email, Gruden suggested that Eric Reid be fired for demonstrating during the national anthem, according to theNYT.
Last week, theWall Street Journalreportedthat Gruden sent another emailusing a racially charged insult to denigrate a Black union official.
In an interview with the newspaper, Gruden apologized for the email, saying: “I’m really sorry.”
He explained that he was angry about a lockout between the NFL and the players' union, which was potentially a threat to the upcoming season, and didn’t trust the direction that Smith had been leading the players.
He added that he had previously used the term “rubber lips” to describe people who were thought to be lying,WSJreported.
In a statement to PEOPLE on Friday, a spokesperson for the league said: “The email from Jon Gruden denigrating DeMaurice Smith is appalling, abhorrent and wholly contrary to the NFL’s values. We condemn the statement and regret any harm that its publication may inflict on Mr. Smith or anyone else.”
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Also on Friday, the Raiders owner Mark Davispublicly released a statementcondemning Gruden’s remarks.
source: people.com
