Fritz Pollard Alliance seeks a “measure to measure” for Jon Gruden’s “painful words”

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The NFL and Raiders have yet to issue any type of sanction against Jon Gruden for the email sent to former Washington executive Bruce Allen in 2011 containing racist remarks about NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice. Smith. The Fritz Pollard Alliance, through its executive director Rod Graves, hopes that a fair and appropriate sanction will be imposed.

“Jon Gruden’s callous remarks about DeMaurice Smith are indicative of the racism that exists at many levels of professional sport,” Graves said in a statement on Sunday morning. “Further, it reveals that the journey of African Americans and other minorities in sport is fraught with overwhelming mindsets at the highest level. We hope that League and Team Ownership will address this issue with a remedy to match these painful words. This is yet another inflection point in a society full of cynical social blinders, devoid of respect for the intellectual capacity and leadership of minorities. When will this end? “

In addition to the email leaked last week following the Washington football team’s investigation, other documents have been located by the league and sent to the Raiders. The content is not clear; we did some coverage on Saturday regarding the matter.

We also looked at the league and squad options for dealing with Gruden. The final decision may depend on these other materials. Beyond that, Gruden’s effectiveness in the future will depend on how his players and staff react to him based on both the email and how he handles it.