One of the first major decisions Jon Gruden made when he returned to the Las Vegas Raiders in 2018 was to trade wideout Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys for a first-round pick.
Cooper has been a star for the Cowboys since joining the franchise in October of 2018. In 46 games with the team, he has 249 receptions for 3,346 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Although his time with the Raiders is officially in the rearview mirror, Cooper was asked about his former coach this Thursday. That’s because Gruden resigned from the Raiders earlier this week.
The New York Times uncovered that Gruden used homophobic and misogynistic language in a series of emails he sent several years ago to former Washington general manager Bruce Allen and others around the league. He also used a racist trope to describe NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith.
Speaking to the media about Gruden this week, Cooper revealed that Gruden never really came off as racist or misogynistic.
“I’ve seen a lot of different things happen, so I wouldn’t say I’m surprised, but knowing Gruden, I never thought he was a racist,” Cooper said. “I never thought he was a misogynistic or anything like that.”
Jon Gruden traded Amari Cooper from the #Raiders to the #Cowboys. “I’ve seen a lot of different things happen, so I wouldn’t say I’m surprised, but knowing Gruden, I never thought he was a racist. I never thought he was a misogynistic or anything like that.”
— Ed Werder (@WerderEdESPN) October 14, 2021
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Judging by players’ reactions to this situation, Gruden’s behavior in the locker room was much different from what was being reported by the New York Times.
Gruden has apologized for the language he used in his old emails, but it’s clear the damage has already been done.
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