The former coach is not someone worth rooting for, but it’s worth finding out why the NFL is so desperate to keep his case out of court.
Jon Gruden was fired as coach of the Raiders days after emails containing racist, homophobic and sexist remarks were exposed. (Don Wright/AP)
You cannot cancel a man without shame, and so Jon Gruden refuses to yield. Four years ago, he was stunned to see his crude emails leaked, ending his second stint as the Las Vegas Raiders coach, shaving five figures off his $100 million contract and transforming him from a likable, cartoonish football madman to an outcast with a digital trail of homophobic, misogynist and racist messages. Yet here he stands, over the embarrassment and under the NFL’s skin, pestering the league in court.