>Gruden gone in 60 seconds
7:35 pm: Schefter is all over this story, chiming back in with a piece that describes how Gruden had worn out his welcome in Tampa, at least with the players that is. Evidently the Glazer family held a mini-straw poll of sorts with the team at the end of the season, only to find the overwhelming sentiment was against Gruden.
7:15 pm: Adam Schefter (NFL.com) is reporting that the favorite for the newly vacated head coach position in Tampa Bay is Buccaneers defensive coordinator Raheem Morris.
Morris was a finalist in Denver before the Broncos hired Josh McDaniels. The players in Tampa respect Morris and given his experience with the team, the turn around time should be minimized.
6:45 pm: Here’s the video from ESPN, reacting to the firing of Gruden and Allen in Tampa:
5:45 pm: In a shocking development, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have fired head coach Jon Gruden along with their general manager Bruce Allen, after the team struggled down the stretch and finished with a disappointing 9-7 record.
Gruden presided over the Bucs for the past seven seasons, leading the team to its only Super Bowl championship in 2003. Allen had been with the organization for the past five seasons.
Tampa Bay co-chairman Joel Glazer had this to say following the dismissal of Gruden and Allen:
“We will be forever grateful to Jon for bringing us the Super Bowl title, and we thank Bruce for his contributions to our franchise. However after careful consideration, we feel that this decision is in the best interest of our organization moving forward.”
This is definitely a surprise move, and one that could have far reaching implications throughout the league, as Gruden has been considered one of the top coaches in the league for some time. The teams who are still looking to fill their head coaching positions could very well place their current plans on hold, at least until they can determine what Gruden’s next step will be.