Jon Gruden Is Still Worth Millions After Leaving the Vegas Raiders

Just four years into the richest coaching contract in NFL history, Las Vegas Raiders coach Jon Gruden resigned after racist, homophobic, and misogynistic emails he sent in the past were made public. Many assumed Gruden’s resignation would put a dent in his net worth, though the former sports coach still appears to be worth a pretty penny.

The Wall Street Journal first reported on Oct. 8, 2021, that Gruden, 58, used racist terms in a 2011 email where he criticized DeMaurice Smith, executive director of the NFL Players Association, who is Black.

Here's how much Gruden's net worth is in 2023, nearly two after he left his position, plus — an update on his civil case against the NFL.

Despite resigning from one of the top coaching positions in the NFL, Gruden's net worth is still pretty solid. Gruden is still reportedly worth $30 million in 2023, though some of that fortune might go toward legal fees. In 2021, Gruden filed a lawsuit against the NFL alleging the league leaked the offensive emails he had sent to Bruce Allen to force his resignation, KSNV reported. While the NFL has denied the claims, the case hasn't been dismissed yet.

In January 2023, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled that the litigation will be stayed for the time being until a resolution can be reached regarding the league's appeal. The NFL is reportedly looking to resolve the matter through arbitration.

In an 2011 leaked email, Gruden wrote, “Dumboriss Smith has lips the size of Michelin tires." After looking into Gruden's other emails, the New York Times found that he had “casually and frequently unleashed misogynistic and homophobic language over several years to denigrate people around the game and to mock some of the league’s momentous changes.”

News of Gruden’s resignation came shortly after that, and was posted to the Raiders Twitter page on Oct. 11.

"I have resigned as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. I love the Raiders and do not want to be a distraction. Thank you to all the players, coaches, staff, and fans of Raider Nation. I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt anyone," Gruden wrote on Twitter.

The scandal is quite a fall from grace for the Super Bowl-winning coach, who was given a 10-year, $100 million contract to return to the Raiders in 2018. At the time, it was the largest contract for a NFL head coach in history.

Gruden started coaching football soon after he graduated from the University of Dayton in 1985. Although he was on the UD Flyers football team, he was a backup quarterback who didn’t get much playing time. In fact, Gruden sat on the bench for most of his college football career.

After college, Gruden held various coaching positions between 1986 and 1997 for college teams at University of Tennessee, Southeast Missouri State, University of the Pacific, and University of Pittsburgh, and NFL teams San Francisco 49ers, Green Bay Packers, and Philadelphia Eagles.

Gruden got his first job as head coach in 1998 with the Oakland Raiders. He stayed with the Raiders until 2001 when he was traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He coached the Buccaneers from 2002 to 2008 and led them to their first Super Bowl title in 2003.

In 2008, after four losses in a row, one of which was a playoff game with Gruden’s former team, the Oakland Raiders, Gruden was fired from the Tampa Bay team. He left coaching for a while and joined ESPN in 2009 as an NFL analyst. Gruden was reportedly the highest-paid ESPN personality with a salary of $6.5 million per year.

Gruden left ESPN in 2018 to rejoin the Raiders, which moved to Las Vegas ahead of the 2020 season. His 10-year contract for $100 million was the longest and largest contract for a head coach in NFL history.

With Gruden’s resignation, he only earned about $40 million of the $100 million total. Depending on the outcome of his pending lawsuit against the NFL, he may collect additional compensation from the league.