NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and outgoing Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder are accused of leaking Jon Gruden’s racist and homophobic emails that led the Raiders to fire the longtime head coach. in 2021.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and outgoing Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder may have played a role in the infamous email leaks that led to the firing of Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden in 2021.
Four unidentified team owners said ESPN that they believe Goodell was directly involved in the leak, while another proprietary source said it was league executives who approved the leaked emails, which contained racist and homophobic statements by Gruden.
The Wall Street Journal reported in October 2021 that Gruden had used a racist term to describe NFL union boss DeMaurice Smith. Gruden resigned the next day, shortly after additional offensive emails were revealed by The New York Times. Gruden sued the league in November 2021, alleging that the NFL and Goodell engaged in a “malicious orchestrated campaign” to “destroy his career and reputation.”
Speaking to ESPN this week, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy repeated the league’s denial that Goodell was involved in the leak: “Neither the NFL nor the commissioner leaked the offensive emails from Coach Gruden.”
Snyder, who is awaiting league approval for his $6 billion sale of the Commanders, is also being accused of leaking the emails to the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times.
Jon Gruden appears in court in May 2022 after a hearing in his ongoing lawsuit with the NFL.
Four anonymous team owners told ESPN they believe Goodell was involved in the leak, while Snyder is also accused of sharing the emails with the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.
