Jon Gruden is seeing something of a media renaissance when it comes to his public image after getting hired by Barstool Sports following an extended period outside of the spotlight.
Gruden was exiled from the football world after e-mails from him using racist and offensive language were leaked to the media and he lost his job with the Las Vegas Raiders.
After disappearing for a lengthy spell, Gruden slowly resurfaced on his own YouTube channel. He then parlayed that into a new gig with Barstool Sports that has launched some surreal moments and viral coverage.
And now it appears that Jon Gruden is fully a part of the football world once again. Even though he didn’t get a job or a reported interview, he was floated as a potential dark horse head coaching candidate. And on Thursday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced that they were putting their former Super Bowl winning head coach back in their ring of honor.
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) February 27, 2025
Gruden was originally removed from the ring of honor in 2021 in the immediate aftermath of the e-mail scandal being leaked. At the time, the franchise noted their commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in making the decision.
“The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have advocated for purposeful change in the areas of race relations, gender equality, diversity and inclusion for many years,” the team statement read. “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.”
Maybe it’s worth asking the Tampa Bay Buccaneers if Jon Gruden’s actions still go against the core values of the organization or if those have changed in recent months considering the current political climate in which we currently reside. Whatever the case, they have softened their stance when it comes to their former Super Bowl winning head coach, as seemingly it has with the rest of the football world.
About Matt Yoder