After leaving the NFL, former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Jon Gruden has cut a niche for himself with his well-received “Gruden’s QB Class” show. Gruden last coached the Las Vegas Raiders before resigning in 2021 after a league investigation revealed racist, misogynistic, and homophobic content in a trail of emails that he had sent in the past.
Jon Gruden Poised for Broadcasting Return
During an interview on “95.7 WDAE,” Buccaneers insider Ira Kaufman revealed that the former Super Bowl-winning coach would be doing play-by-play for an NFL preseason game shortly.
“In about a month, Jon Gruden will be doing play-by-play on an NFL game,” Kaufman said. “He’s not fooling around about this stuff. He worked with (Mike) Tirico, who’s about the best in the business.”
Gruden started his illustrious coaching career as a graduate assistant for the Tennessee Volunteers in 1986. He held several positions in college football before becoming an offensive assistant with the San Francisco 49ers in 1990, and then became the Pittsburgh Panthers’ wide receivers coach.
Breaking News: @IKaufman76 of @JoeBucsFan tells @realrockriley on WDAE that Jon Gruden will be doing play-by-play for an NFL preseason game in about a month. Who else is excited about Gruden back on the mic?#WeAreTheKrewe pic.twitter.com/DeiUCG6q7N
— 95.7 WDAE & AM620 (@957WDAE) July 14, 2026
Gruden is best known for his stint as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders (1998-2001) and the Buccaneers (2002-2008), whom he led to their first Super Bowl win in 2003.
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After being fired by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2009, Gruden embarked on his first analysis role with ESPN on the ‘Monday Night Football’ show. He was also an analyst for ESPN during the NFL Draft and postseason college football games, including the 2010 Rose Bowl, the 2010 BCS national championship game, and the 2011 Orange Bowl.
During an appearance on the “Not Just Football” podcast on Wednesday, Gruden revealed that he missed coaching and had met with several colleges.
“I would love to get into a locker room and start putting together some game plans again,” Gruden said. “I miss it, man. But, we’ll take one day at a time, and all you can do is prepare yourself for somebody to toss you the chalk and interview you. I’ll be ready if somebody does.
“I’ll be honest. I met with a couple of colleges. I don’t know about college football, honestly, with the NIL if that’s for me. I don’t know if I want to spend a lot of time raising money, but who knows?”
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Gruden returned to the Las Vegas Raiders as the head coach in 2018 before stepping down in 2021 when his controversial emails were uncovered. The former Raiders coach joined Barstool Sports in 2024.
