Jon Gruden is itching to get back into football.
And if you couldn’t tell by his recently launched YouTube channel where he breaks down film, interviews Doug Williams, Drew Brees, and Derek Carr, and shares his love for the game, then perhaps his CBS Sports exclusive interview should suffice.
In other words, it’s not exactly a secret that Gruden wants back in.
He’s served as an advisor for the New Orleans Saints and was a candidate for their offensive coordinator vacancy, which eventually went to Klint Kubiak. After not getting that gig, Gruden took a job as an advisor to the Milano Seamen of the European League of Football and was also seen working with the Kansas City Chiefs coaching staff in Training Camp.
Despite his desire to return, Gruden’s comeback remains complicated due to the fallout from his resignation as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders in 2021. His departure came after offensive emails were released during the NFL’s investigation into the Washington Commanders’ workplace misconduct.
Gruden’s ongoing legal battle with the NFL, in which he accuses commissioner Roger Goodell of orchestrating the leak to tarnish his reputation, further clouds his potential return. The lawsuit remains unresolved, with the NFL denying the allegations and seeking to have the case dismissed.
Gruden’s presence in football is undeniable, but his path back into a prominent coaching role may be shaped by the outcome of these legal challenges and the broader response from the football community. And that’s seemingly why he’s no longer eying a role at the NFL level, but rather in college football.
“Yeah, I’m interested in coaching,” Gruden tells CBS Sports’ Brandon Marcello. “My dad was a college coach, I was a college coach at Pitt, my wife was a cheerleader at Tennessee when I met her. Hell yeah, I’m interested in coaching. I know I can help a team, I know I can help young players get better, and I know I can hire a good staff, and that’s the only thing I can guarantee. But yeah, I’m very interested in coaching at any level, period.”
A Group of Five Athletic Director told CBS Sports that in the current climate they’d interview Gruden, while an SEC Football Administrator called him “untouchable.” You can say what you want about Gruden, but that latter part might not be true because Hugh Freeze, Jeff Lebby, D.J. Durkin, and Bobby Petrino each have jobs in that very same league.
But regardless of what public perception may or may not be, Gruden sees more of a pathway forward at a level of football that doesn’t involve Goodell.
Here’s more from the CBS Sports interview:
College football is central to Gruden’s focus perhaps because an NFL return is much more difficult to imagine. The college game is changing, and Gruden is trying to learn as much as he can about the intricacies of the sport: the transfer portal, recruiting, personnel and how recruiting services analyze and assign star ratings to high school players.
He says Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe joined him for a few days in Tampa to study offenses, and on a now-erased grease board, Gruden had detailed and studied the stats of the game’s top 15 quarterbacks. During a casual conversation last Monday, he quickly references a big-time throw Texas’ Quinn Ewers made on third down against Michigan two days prior.
Even though Gruden has rejected college football for years, the title of his YouTube channel, “Gruden Loves Football,” seemingly encompasses all of football.
“If there’s somebody out there that thinks they need a candidate, somebody to come in there, maybe lather it up a little bit, jazz it up a little bit, I’ll be down here in Tampa,” Gruden said. “I’ll be ready to go if needed.”