Jon Gruden’s name comes up in connection with coaching vacancies on an annual basis.
Even though Chucky hasn’t coached in the NFL since being fired by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2008, he is still mentioned when jobs open up at both the college and pro level.
In an interview with the Pewter Report, Gruden acknowledged he still has the itch to coach and said he has met with people about jobs.
“I’ve met with several people – I won’t deny that,” Gruden told Pewter Report, a Buccaneers-centric site. “People – just about every year I talk about coming back to coach. I’m not in here every day at 4:30 or 4:00 in the morning watching pinball. You know? I’m preparing myself to come back. I am. Every day. I’m preparing to come back.
“It helps me in my broadcasting and I think if you lose that edge … you can’t come back unless you are totally wired with college football, personnel, schemes, the CBA, how people are practicing, trends, you know. You’ve got stay on top of this stuff.”
Though Gruden said he prepares like he is returning to coaching because it helps keep him sharp for his job as a broadcaster, Gruden talked about having the “itch” to coach.
“I’m very happy with what I’m doing. I haven’t lost the itch, though. I miss the players. I miss … I won’t deny that. I don’t want to start anything, but I say the same thing to everybody. There are very few passions in my life. The man upstairs, family and football.”
There aren’t too many Super Bowl-winning coaches available, so of course Gruden will garner interest. Add in his age — he’s still very young at 53 — along with his presence on ESPN, and it’s easy to see why he remains fresh in the minds of many when it comes to coaching jobs.
Gruden’s comments seem to confirm the rumors that he listened about the Rams job. But when you’re making as much money as he is, it really would have to be a perfect job to leave broadcasting behind and return to the grind.
