Jon Gruden RETURNS to the NFL as the ‘Saints bring the ex-Raiders coach in to pick his brain’ ahead of first season with Derek Carr
- Jon Gruden was brought into New Orleans’ building so they could pick his brain
- Gruden employed a West Coast offense which Carr played under during 2018-21
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Jon Gruden has returned to the NFL albeit in a relatively covert fashion.
The former Raiders and Buccaneers coach was reportedly brought into New Orleans this week as an offensive consultant, given his ties to new Saints quarterback Derek Carr and the West Coast offense.
Gruden and Carr know each other well; the Fresno State product played under the Super Bowl winning coach from 2018 up until the sixth game of the 2021 NFL season.
Gruden was forced to resign after offensive leaked emails became public during a workplace misconduct investigation into the Washington Commanders. Since, Gruden has been something of an NFL pariah, with his role in New Orleans his first in over two years.
NOLA.com reported Gruden was brought in to help his former quarterback and the Saints’ offensive staff regarding the West Coast offense — traditionally run by the ex-Bucs coach, and now in New Orleans.
Jon Gruden was brought in by the New Orleans Saints to act as a mentor to the Saints staff
Gruden coached the Saints new quarterback Derek Carr while in Las Vegas between 2018-21
‘It’s a new system, new words, [but] a lot of similarities to things that I grew up on and believe in,’ Carr said, via NOLA.com.
‘It’s still a learning curve, but not as big of a curve as it could be in a different system or a different offense.’
While Gruden may hope for a larger role in the league, it is unclear whether he will be welcomed back as a full-time coach at any juncture.
According to comments he made back in August, it is still something Gruden desires.
‘I still love football. I’ve made some mistakes. But I don’t think anybody in here hasn’t. And I just ask for forgiveness and, hopefully, I get another shot,’ Gruden said while speaking at the Little Rock Touchdown Club in Arkansas.
He has since apologized for comments which offended certain sections of society.
‘I’m ashamed about what has come about in these emails, and I’ll make no excuses for it,’ Gruden said. ‘It’s shameful. But, I am a good person. I believe that. I go to church. I’ve been married for 31 years. I’ve got three great boys.’
Gruden’s emails were released as part of an investigation by the league into workplace conditions within the team now known as the Washington Commanders.
Carr will be working within the West Coast offense – a system he played in under Gruden in LV
Former Raiders coach Jon Gruden said he still wanted to coach in the league last August in AK
Gruden was critical of NFLPA chief DeMaurice Smith and Roger Goodell in the leaked emails
He later filed a lawsuit against the NFL, accusing the league of a ‘Soviet-style character assassination.’
‘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.’
The Nevada Supreme Court has currently brought a temporary halt to the suit against the NFL and Goodell as the league builds am appeal.
In private emails sent to then-Commanders president Bruce Allen, Gruden made fun of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, President Joe Biden and NFLPA chief DeMaurice Smith.
Gruden said African-American players’ union executive director DeMaurice Smith had ‘lips the size of Michelin tires’, called Goodell a ‘f*****’ and Biden a ‘nervous clueless p****.’