The Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced on Tuesday that they are removing Jon Gruden from their Ring of Honor following the negative publicity from his email leaks.
Gruden resigned on Monday night from his position as head coach of the Raiders after numerous offensive emails he sent from 2011-2018 leaked.
The Bucs said in a statement:
“The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have advocated for purposeful change in the areas of race relations, gender equality, diversity and inclusion for many years. While we acknowledge Jon Gruden’s contributions on the field, his actions go against our core values as an organization. Therefore, he will no longer continue to be a member of the Buccaneers Ring of Honor.”
It’s hard to view this statement as anything more than opportune public relations piling on, coupled with revenge. If the Buccaneers cared that much about gender equality and race relations, would they keep Antonio Brown on their roster given his history of sexual misconduct allegations, legal issues, and racial name-calling?
And if the Buccaneers are so committed to these values and really want to take a stand, why aren’t they giving back the Super Bowl they won under Gruden?
If you’re wondering why the Bucs acted so quickly to remove Gruden from their Ring of Honor, look no further than the leaked emails.
According to The New York Times, Gruden took aim at Bryan Glazer, whose family owns the Bucs, in one of his email exchanges.
“Gruden crudely asked Allen to tell Bryan Glazer, whose family owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers where Gruden coached until 2008, to perform oral sex on him. Allen said Glazer would ‘take you up on that offer.’”
There you go. You say that about a team owner and you’re not going to remain in good standing with the team much longer. Not only did Gruden say numerous offensive things in his emails, but he had a wide range of targets, including a high-level person with the Bucs — one of their co-owners.
Photo: Aug 18, 2021; Thousand Oaks, CA, USA; Las Vegas Raiders coach Jon Gruden during a joint practice against the Los Angeles Rams. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
