Former Washington head coach Jay Gruden is finally back in the NFL.
The Los Angeles Rams recently hired Gruden as a consultant, meaning Gruden is reunited with his former offensive coordinator in Washington, Rams head coach Sean McVay.
Gruden had interviews with the Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints in the offseason to be their offensive coordinator. Last offseason, he tried out for a TV role but remained in the Northern Virginia area as a frequent guest on some local radio shows, offering his takes on his former team and the entire NFL.
Gruden was at the Rams and Bengals’ joint practice this week, donning Rams gear. However, he will work remotely.
“You guys know how close Jay has been to me,” McVay said per Sarah Barshop of ESPN. “He’s been such an instrumental part of my coaching career. Huge mentor. So he’s going to help us out in a consulting role. He’s a guy that I heavily rely on and have always, whether he is rocking the Rams blue or not.”
Gruden and McVay go way back. Before McVay’s time on Gruden’s Washington staff as his offensive coordinator, the pair worked together as offensive assistants under Jon Gruden in 2008 with the Buccaneers, and Jay Gruden hired McVay in 2009 when he was head coach of the UFL’s Florida Tuskers.
Good for Gruden, who spent over five seasons as Washington’s head coach before being fired in 2019 after an 0-5 start. Gruden did several good things during his time in Washington, including leading the franchise to back-to-back winning seasons, something Joe Gibbs didn’t do in his second tenure as Washington’s head coach or Mike Shanahan.
In fact, no other head coach has had back-to-back winning seasons under Daniel Snyder’s ownership. He did all of this working under Snyder and former team president Bruce Allen. In his six offseasons with Washington, Gruden never handpicked his own quarterback.
He should have a job in the NFL, and it’s only fitting he’s reunited with McVay, even if it’s only a consulting role for now.
