NFL Faces Unwanted Transparency Nightmare Following Court Loss To Jon Gruden – Why Brian Flores Could Benefit

Jon Gruden is winning again. And perhaps so is Brian Flores. And while the victory late Monday didn't come on the football field for the NFL coaches, it may be no less fulfilling because it is decidedly meaningful for both.

Gruden on Monday beat the NFL in the Nevada Supreme Court. 

The court ruled the NFL's decision to force arbitration, overseen by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, in Gruden's lawsuit against the league and Goodell, was "unconscionable." 

Jon Gruden wins in court. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Nevada Court: Goodell Cannot Arbitrate 

"By its own unambiguous language, the NFL Constitution no longer applies to Gruden," the justices wrote in their 5-2 decision. "If the NFL Constitution were to bind former employees, the Commissioner could essentially pick and choose which disputes to arbitrate."

Gruden's suit argues the league leaked to the Wall Street Journal and then the New York Times homophobic, misogynistic and racist emails Gruden wrote to various people when he was an ESPN employee in order to get him fired as the Raiders head coach.

Gruden resigned soon after the publication of those emails in October 2021 and has been out of coaching since. 

So what does it all mean?

Night view of the Supreme Court of the United States known as SCOTUS in Washington D.C.The Main Entrance with lights, the West Facade with the marble Pediment and the inscription EQUAL JUSTICE UNDER LAW with the night sky and stars. The Supreme Court Building illuminated during the night. The historical building houses the Supreme Court of the United States, referred to as The Marble Palace, the building serves as the official workplace of the Chief Justice of the United States and the eight associate justices of the Supreme Court. Washington DC, USA on November 8, 2024 (Photo by Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

NFL's Only Relief In The Supreme Court

Well, the NFL can and will appeal the Nevada ruling to the United States Supreme Court. But if it loses at the Supreme Court, or the Supreme Court declines to hear the case, things are about to get very interesting.

That's because if Gruden ultimately prevails in having his suit heard in court, his legal team will have the right to discovery and be able to depose whichever parties they deem relevant. 

That process would potentially put a lot of information into the public domain that the NFL is fighting tooth and nail to keep behind the closed doors of an arbitration hearing. This is the reason the NFL wants arbitration:

It's not an open proceeding.

The league also doesn't want its employees to be compelled under oath to have to answer questions on the matter, first by Gruden's attorneys and then, potentially, in open court.

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - FEBRUARY 03: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell speaks during a press conference ahead of the Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome on February 03, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

Gruden Team Focuses On Goodell

The Gruden team is not dismissing the possibility the leak of those emails – which included homophobic slurs about Goodell – was either approved or ordered by Goodell, per a source.

If that were proven, even in the court of public opinion, which is also a venue where Gruden wants to fight as well as in court, it would potentially rock the league office.

And watching all this is the Flores legal team. That team intends to review the Nevada Supreme Court decision to potentially use it in its ongoing case against the NFL and multiple teams, per a source familiar with that team's thinking.

Flores is similarly trying to have his 2022 racial discrimination lawsuit, which was joined by assistant coaches Steve Wilks and Ray Horton, argued in open court rather than behind closed doors in arbitration.

Former head coach Brian Flores of the Miami Dolphins on the field prior to the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Flores declined to move forward in the Arizona Cardinals head coaching search. (Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

Brian Flores Wants Fight Open To Public

Flores similarly wants to potentially make discovery, depositions and court testimony open to the public while the NFL is fighting that possibility.  

In March 2023, a federal judge ruled that parts of Flores’s case – specifically claims against the Giants, Broncos, Texans, and portions against the NFL – could proceed in court, while other claims tied to his contract with the Dolphins must go to arbitration.

The court said if Goodell administered the arbitration in a biased manner, Flores could go to court and fight that decision on the grounds Goodell was biased. But the court declined to prejudge Goodell's fairness or the idea he would name himself or a biased arbitrator. 

Although that part of the decision seemingly runs counter to the direction the Gruden decision just went in Nevada, the NFL didn't see that as a win. 

In March of this year, it went to the U.S. Court of Appeals to contest the split because it would like everything to go to arbitration.   

Although two of the three judges expressed concern about the NFL's demand for arbitration, the panel did not issue a decision immediately following the arguments.