Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis has explained his justification for pursuing Tom Brady as a part-owner and used a colorful description on his way there.
Davis told reporters that the implosion of Jon Gruden's latest tenure with the team is why he wanted to add someone with football experience to the franchise's leadership.
"Bringing in Tom Brady was bringing in somebody on the football side that I had been lacking having here in the organization," Davis said. "Back in I guess it was '18, with Jon Gruden. He was somebody that I brought in and really expected to be that person on the football side that would bring stability to the organization. He had a 10-year contract and all that, and his head was chopped off. And we were put in a really bad position as an organization."
The Raiders hired Gruden as their head coach in January of 2018, signing him to a 10-year, $100 million contract. He lasted fewer than four seasons and went 22-31 before the scandal struck.
Gruden was put under the microscope after reports surfaced showing a pattern of racist, misogynistic, and homophobic language in emails over a 10-year period. As a result, he resigned as Las Vegas' head coach in 2021.
It could be argued that given how things were going, it was a blessing Gruden resigned, but Davis doesn't seem to feel that way.
Davis continued, "We want to build something here and again, that's been the process and that mindset all along. Like I said, it got offset or kind of blown up when Jon Gruden was sent away and so we've been trying to get it right since then and we'll see, but I've got patience to get it right, and I think we've got the people now -- again I've always felt that -- results are what speak to me and that's what we'll see"
The Raiders were 4-13 this season and, with Brady helping to oversee things, fired head coach Antonio Pierce, then hired new general manager John Spytek and new head coach Pete Carroll.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Raiders Owner Blames Franchise Woes on Losing Jon Gruden: 'His Head Was Chopped Off'.
