Jon Gruden Reinstated into Buccaneers' Ring of Honor; Former HC Was Removed in 2021

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced Thursday that they are reinstating former head coach Jon Gruden into their Ring of Honor after removing him in 2021 due to the public release of racist, anti-gay and misogynistic emails Gruden sent that dated back to 2010.

The Bucs made the following statement:

Among his many offensive emails that were sent to former Washington Commanders president Bruce Allen and publicly leaked in 2021, Gruden called NFL commissioner Roger Goodell a "f--got" and a "clueless anti football p--sy" and used anti-gay language to describe team owners and NFL journalists; used racist language and tropes to describe former NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith; said Goodell shouldn't have pressured Jeff Fisher to draft "queers"—a reference to the then-St. Louis Rams drafting Michael Sam, a gay man—and shared topless pictures of women, including one such photo of two Washington cheerleaders.

In the wake of those emails becoming public, Gruden resigned from his position as the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.

As for his time in Tampa Bay, Gruden served as the head coach of the Buccaneers between the 2002-07 seasons. The Bucs were 57-55 in those years, with three playoff berths and a Super bowl title in the 2002 campaign.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the foundation for Gruden's eventual reinstatement into the Ring of Honor was laid last summer at Monte Kiffin's celebration of life, when "members of the Glazer family—owners of the team—attended and were touched by a story told by Monte's son, Lane Kiffin. It revolved around Monte's strong belief in giving people second chances. From there, things warmed up between the two sides and led to Gruden attending a game last season and sitting in the Glazer's suite."