Judge Rules Against NFL, Denies Motion To Dismiss Jon Gruden’s Lawsuit

The NFL’s motion to dismiss Jon Gruden’s lawsuit against the league was denied Wednesday.

Nevada 8th Judicial District Court Judge Nancy Allf ruled against the NFL’s motion to send the case to arbitration, as well as the league’s request to dismiss the case outright, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Allf denied the motion after a nearly hour-and-a-half hearing.

Gruden, 58, stepped down as Raiders head coach in October 2021 after emails surfaced in which he made several racist and misogynistic comments. In his lawsuit, Gruden alleges that the NFL leaked the emails to the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal with the intention to harm his reputation and force him out of the league.

The NFL counters that the suit is a baseless attempt to blame the league and that Gruden only has himself to blame. Gruden was in the courtroom Wednesday but declined to answer questions following the hearing.

“I’m going to let the process take care of itself,” Gruden said after the hearing. “Go Raiders.”

Adam Hosmer-Henner, one of Gruden’s lawyers, argued Wednesday that the lawsuit wasn’t related to Gruden’s emails, but rather the actions Gruden said the NFL took to pressuring the Raiders to fire him.

With the lawsuit still alive, the expectation is that the NFL will attempt to come to a settlement with Gruden. The case continuing to trial could create a firestorm for the NFL, as it would leave the possibility of information getting out that the league does not want in the public.

The Super Bowl-winning head coach was in year four of a 10-year, $100 million contract at the time of his resignation. He went 22-31 in his second stint as Raiders head coach, after leaving his Monday Night Football announcing gig with ESPN.

Here’s what the OutKick 360 crew had to say about the situation:

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