Jon Gruden: 3 NFL Teams Gruden Should Consider Coaching in 2012

A report from Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune has surfaced today claiming Monday Night Football analyst Jon Gruden plans to return to coaching in 2012 and that ESPN is aware of his intentions.

Gruden signed an "exclusive" five-year deal with ESPN earlier this year that was to start in 2012. Despite that, the report claims ESPN knows he is planning to depart. I highly doubt the network would try to stand in his way.

Assuming this report is true, it is time to start examining where Gruden might decide to coach next season. With several attractive options available to him, here is my list of the three places most likely to land Gruden over the next few weeks.

St. Louis Rams

As part of the investigation into Gruden's plans, Acee reports that if St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke fires coach Steve Spagnuolo and general manager Billy Devaney, Kroenke will then attempt to hire San Diego Chargers general manager A.J. Smith (if he is fired by the Chargers) and Gruden as a package deal.

Chargers owner Dean Spanos is expected to reveal his plans next week, and most believe head coach Norv Turner will be let go and that Smith could also be sent packing.

If Spagnuolo is fired, the St. Louis job would arguably be the most attractive opening available. After all, the Rams have a quarterback of the future in Sam Bradford, could end up with the No. 1 pick in the 2012 NFL draft and will have the most cap space available of any team in 2013.

Gruden would obviously love to get his hands on a young quarterback like Bradford and mold him to fit his West Coast system. I think this would actually be an outstanding fit because there would be low expectations for at least the first year, so Gruden would have time to implement his system and build a roster around Bradford.

While a combination of Smith and Gruden may be too good to be true, I could certainly see the coach ending up in St. Louis.

San Diego Chargers

If I know one thing for sure, it is that Jon Gruden loves him some Philip Rivers. The coach famous for his scowl positively gushed about the 30-year-old San Diego signal-caller during the Chargers' Monday Night Football matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 13.

The Chargers will be another attractive opening this offseason, as they already have a load of talent in place. With Rivers at quarterback, Vincent Jackson and Malcom Floyd at receiver, Antonio Gates at tight end and Ryan Mathews and Mike Tolbert occupying the running back spots, San Diego is stacked offensively.

Think Gruden wouldn't love partnering up with Rivers to try to bring San Diego its first major professional sports championship?

If San Diego had a competent coach and the offensive line had remained healthy this season, there is no telling where the Bolts could have gone. There are some holes that need to be filled—offensive line depth, a safety to pair with Eric Weddle and another rushing linebacker—but the Chargers are ready to compete and win now.

If Gruden came to town and changed the attitude and culture of the franchise, San Diego could immediately see success. This really could be a fantastic fit if Gruden wants to win now as opposed to taking time to develop a contender.

Miami Dolphins

Gruden has experience working in Florida and might be the guy most equipped to turn around the directionless Miami Dolphins. Miami has finished the year strong behind the unlikely combination of quarterback Matt Moore and running back Reggie Bush. 

You can debate all day whether or not Moore is a long-term solution at quarterback in Miami, but you can't argue with what Bush has done since being given full-time carries.

Gruden would obviously love to go somewhere that he already has a stud left tackle (Jake Long) and a solid running back stable (Bush and rookie Daniel Thomas). All that is left for Miami to do offensively is figure out if Moore is the team's franchise quarterback and find some receivers to go along with Brandon Marshall.

So far this season Bush has rushed for 1,086 yards and six touchdowns on just 216 carries. That's an average of 5.0 yards per carry. He has also caught 43 passes for 296 yards and another score. 

If Gruden did come in, I feel like he might want to select a quarterback in the 2012 NFL draft so he'd have someone to build the team around. While options are now limited since Matt Barkley decided to return to USC, the Dolphins could still try to package some picks to move up for Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III.

I think Miami would be a good fit for Gruden as long as the team was committed to finding a quarterback other than Moore to build around.