One of the hallmarks of a core footballer is to have a career ranging from player to coach of a team or perhaps analyzing matches when you reach an inactive age to stand on the pitch. Jon Gruden currently falls into the latter category. The American footballer had a father who was also involved in football and he made a career out of it, becoming a coach and now an analyst at ESPN. You can learn more about him here.
Background Information On Jon Gruden
Jon, fully addressed as Jon David Gruden was born by Kathy Gruden in Sandusky, Ohio, to his father Jim Gruden on August 17, 1963. His father was a professional regional football scout and director of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ player staff.
Jon attended Clay High School in South Bend, Indiana, and has been a fan of the Cleveland Browns ever since he was a child. He graduated from high school in 1981 and then attended Muskingum College in New Concord, Ohio. After a year in Muskingum, he moved to the University of Dayton, and in Dayton, he became a leading man and backup quarterback for the Flyers for three years. In 1985 he graduated in communication sciences with a diploma, but never saw much football playing at the Flyers.
College Coaching Career
After college, Jon Gruden quickly became more involved with football when he was hired as an assistant coach at the University of Tennessee for the 1985 and 86 seasons. At the end of his brief stay there, he spent the next two years as a quarterback coach for Southeast Missouri Stateside before being hired as an Offensive Assistant Tight End Coach for the University of the Pacific in 1989. In 1990, he returned to the San Francisco 49ers as a special assistant to quarterback coach Mike Holmgren, while his move to the University of Pittsburgh as a Wide Receivers Coach in 1991 marked the end of his career as a college coach.
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Professional Coaching Career
Jon was later hired by his former boss, Mike Holmgren, who offered him the position of special offensive assistant/broadband coach at Green Bay Packers. He spent three seasons with the team before becoming offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles under former assistant Packers coach Ray Rhodes. Jon was appointed head coach of the Oakland Riders in 1998 after being selected by the owner and general manager of the Oakland Raiders, Al Davis.
With the horsemen, Jon Gruden took them to three consecutive playoffs in three seasons. The team had its best run in a decade in 2000, when they finished 12-4. They reached the AFC Championship but eventually lost 16-3 to the Baltimore Ravens, who won the Super Bowl.
He joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2002 and brought the team’s offensive strategy to life by revising the team’s offensive strategy and revising other aspects of the ailing team. His efforts here paid off as the team won the NFC Championship match and Super Bowl XXXVII.
2006 somehow marked the end of his coaching career with the Buccaneers, when the Buccaneers recorded their biggest loss of a season with him, 4-12. The coach continued to be plagued by many problems such as player injuries, lost draft picks, and salary caps in the following seasons. He continued to make some profits but was eventually laid off in 2010, whereupon he volunteered as an assistant offensive line coach at Carrollwood Day School in Tampa, Florida, and also founded the Fired Football Coaches Association.
In 2009, a new chapter in his football career began when he was hired by ESPN as a color analyst for the Monday Night Football program. After analyzing NFL drafts and college football games, Jon became heavily involved with ESPN in the years that followed.
Surprisingly, but remarkably, Jon Gruden saw himself on the coaching side of the field when he was appointed head coach of the Oakland Raiders after a nine-year absence as a coach. The Ohio native signed a $100 million 10-year contract with the team, which became the biggest record signing in the league’s history on 6 January 2018.
Family – Wife, Son, Brothers
Jon Gruden is a married man who enjoys his family life without rumors or divorce stories. He is married to his college sweetheart Cindy Brooks, whom he met in early 1991. The two lovers married on July 6, 1991, and have been blessed with three lovely children ever since: Deuce Gruden, Michael Gruden, and Jayson Gruden.
His brother Jay Gruden also began playing football and became head coach of the Washington Redskins before playing and coaching in the Arena Football League. His brother’s other brother is named James and is active in the medical world as a radiologist at Weill Cornell Medicine.
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Jon Gruden Height
The ex-footballer certainly has an impressive height. He’s 5’8″ (1.78 m) tall. At this height, he has an athletic build that weighs up to 91 kg.
Salary And Net Worth,
In fact, Jon Gruden made history with his recent signing as coach after an absence of almost nine years. It was also a record-breaking achievement for him to commit himself to the new task ahead, considering the value of the contract. Now he earns about $6.5 million in annual salary, while his net worth was estimated at $22.5 million.
