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Jon Gruden: Why Won’t He Coach in the NFL?

In true “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” form, while coaches were being let go on Black Monday–one man would rather not have a part in any of that NFL coaching...
Jon Gruden: Why Won’t He Coach in the NFL?
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  • In true “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” form, while coaches were being let go on Black Monday–one man would rather not have a part in any of that NFL coaching business.

    Teams pursue him, and fans of struggling teams mention his name in whimsical tones, but according to St. Paul Pioneer Press, the former NFL coach and now ESPN sports analyst Jon Gruden bluntly says about it all, “I don’t want to be considered for any of these jobs.”

    50-year-old Jon Gruden coached in the NFL for seven seasons after a number of assistant coaching jobs. He first began head coaching in 1998 with the Oakland Raiders. After four successful years with the Raiders, he moved on to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to meet the ultimate success– the 2003 Super Bowl win in his first year, and against his old team to sweeten the victory.

    Things went steadily well with Gruden and the Buccaneers in the years after, but the team began to decline in 2006. That year, Gruden coached the team to their worst record in more than a decade, and certainly to the worst record of his own career.

    It seemed to get better in 2007, and by the next season the Buccaneers were set to make the playoffs with home field advantage. Instead, the team shockingly lost every game the December of 2008, were eliminated from the playoffs and Jon Gruden was fired from the Buccanners weeks later.

    His time post-Tampa Bay seemed almost reminiscent to “former football legend” Al Bundy of Married with Children. Right after his dismissal, Gruden volunteered as an assistant coach at a day school and rented an office in a strip mall for his newly created “Fired Football Coaches Association.” Do you think that Jon Gruden is scarred from the rapid decline during his time with the Buccaneers? Some may think so.

    Currently serving as an analyst for ESPN’s Monday Night Football, he says that he’s, “hoping to do the best I can to hang on to my job.”

    Sounds like Jon Gruden (understandably) isn’t a fan of the volatile NFL coaching climate, and is content with being a part of the game without the high pressure.

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