Saints Consultation Could Have Legal Ramifications For Gruden

Jon Gruden's consultation with the New Orleans Saints could have legal ramifications regarding his lawsuit against the NFL.

Gruden's meeting with the New Orleans Saints could impact his ongoing lawsuit against the NFL, according to A.J. Perez of Front Office Sports.  The Saints enlisted the aid of the embattled former Las Vegas Raiders head coach to help with offensive installations and how to maximize Derek Carr's potential as the starting quarterback.

National Football League appealed to the Nevada Supreme Court for Jon Gruden's lawsuit to go to arbitration.  "Conversely, Gruden working with an NFL team could actually aid the NFL if a jury finds in favor of Gruden.  Gruden claimed the leaked emails resulted in "significant injuries to his reputation that will affect his future employment prospects and endorsement opportunities," Perez wrote.

The NFL could argue that hiring Gruden as a consultant for the Saints to work with Derek Carr and the team's offense would contradict the notion that the NFL's actions negatively impacted his future job opportunities.

Sep 21, 2020; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden with quarterback Derek Carr (4) before a NFL game against the New Orleans Saints at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The league may use a positive judgment for Gruden and show "his reputation isn't so damaged that he's unable to work alongside or with other NFL teams," legal podcaster and attorney Dan Lust spelled out on Conduct Detrimental Podcast.

Equally, the NFL must prove it did not initially leak additional emails forcing the Las Vegas Raiders to terminate their head coach.  Gruden's team must show that the alleged NFL's leaking emails damaged his career and prospective job opportunities.

As the drama of the National Football League vs. Jon Gruden plays out in the courtroom, the New Orleans Saints faced minor backlash from fans and experts regarding Gruden's consultation.  A number of Saints fans, and the team, were more interested in an offensive-minded coach aiding the team than the alleged racist elements of his emails while at ESPN.

Dennis Allen mentioned to the media last week:

"Look, I mean, number one, we've had several coaches come and visit. Obviously, Jon's a guy that has a lot of experience with Derek, and Derek's had his most success under Jon Gruden, and so we felt like bringing him in, having a chance to sit down and visit with him as an offensive staff, with the quarterbacks and just getting some new thoughts and ideas of things we might be able to implement.

I would say this, offensively, for a long time that I've been here, we've been pretty effective. So, I don't see us putting in a whole new offense or doing something dramatic. But if there's a few ideas that we could take from that, we felt like that would be beneficial."

Many may have been concerned about something other than Gruden's ability to help the team.  The key point was regarding the players and their view point on Gruden's emails and their impact on the athletes.

Moving forward, Jon Gruden will have his day in the Nevada State Supreme Court against the NFL.

---

Get more Saints Lagniappe with the Saints News Network for more coverage of the New Orleans Saints throughout the offseason from senior writers John Hendrix, Bob Rose, Ross Jackson, and Kyle T. Mosley.

Follow SNN on Twitter and Facebook!