Jon Gruden used racist comment in 2011 email, reports says

The NFL reacted powerfully and rapidly Friday to a study that Jon Gruden utilized a racist remark astir NFL Players Association person DeMaurice Smith successful an email 10 years ago.

A Wall Street Journal communicative noted that Gruden, past moving for ESPN and present manager of the Las Vegas Raiders, referred successful a racist mode to Smith’s facial features.

“The email from Jon Gruden denigrating DeMaurice Smith is appalling, abhorrent and wholly contrary to the NFL’s values,” NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy said. “We condemn the connection and regret immoderate harm that its work whitethorn inflict connected Mr. Smith oregon anyone else.”

The league is looking into the substance and a idiosyncratic acquainted with that probe told The Associated Press that disciplinary enactment is imaginable for Gruden. The idiosyncratic spoke connected information of anonymity due to the fact that details of immoderate league probe are not made public.

Gruden’s remark successful an email to then-Washington Football Team President Bruce Allen came during the 2011 lockout of the players by the NFL. Gruden told the paper helium was aggravated astir the lockout during labour negotiations and helium didn’t spot the absorption the national was taking. He besides apologized for the remark, the Journal reported.

During a reappraisal of emails regarding workplace misconduct astatine the Washington Football Team that was completed during the summer, “the league was informed of the beingness of emails that raised issues beyond the scope of that investigation,” McCarthy added.

“Over the past fewer months, astatine the commissioner’s direction,” helium added of Roger Goodell, “senior NFL executives reviewed the contented of much than 650,000 emails, including this email which was sent to a nine employee. Earlier this week, the executives presented a summary of that reappraisal to the commissioner and are sharing with Raiders executives emails pertaining to manager Gruden.”

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