League to appeal ruling in suit on Gruden’s emails

The NFL said Wednesday it will appeal a ruling denying a request to move former Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden’s lawsuit against the league from a courtroom into closed-door arbitration. Gruden’s lawsuit accuses the NFL of leaking his racist, sexist and homophobic emails to force him to resign last October.

“Neither the NFL nor the Commissioner (Roger Goodell) leaked Coach Gruden’s offensive emails,” the league said in a statement issued after Clark County District Court Judge Nancy Allf rejected league bids to dismiss Gruden’s claim outright or to order out-ofcourt talks that could be overseen by Goodell.

The judge pointed to Gruden’s claim that the league intentionally leaked only his documents. She said that could show evidence of “specific intent,” or an act designed to cause a result.

The judge’s ruling in the case that Gruden filed in November marked the first public skirmish in what could become a long legal process pitting the head coach who departed the Raiders with more than six seasons remaining on his record 10-year, $100 million contract against Goodell.

Attorneys for both sides declined to comment following a 90-minute hearing before Allf.

Gruden emerged from the courtroom declaring, “Go, Raiders” and told reporters as he walked to an elevator that he was “just going to let the process take care of itself.”

Gruden accuses the NFL and Goodell of destroying his career and scuttling endorsement contracts by releasing emails that no one disputes Gruden sent — and that league attorney Kannon Shanmugam told the judge contained “racist, misogynistic and homophobic” language unfit for repetition in a public courtroom. Some reportedly derided Goodell.

Attorneys said the messages came from among some 650,000 obtained by the league almost a year ago during a probe of the workplace culture of the Washington franchise now called the Commanders.

Raiders owner Mark Davis said in late October that the team reached a settlement with Gruden over the final six-plus years of his contract.

Briefly: The Steelers stayed in-house to find Kevin Colbert’s replacement, promoting longtime executive Omar Khan to general manager . ... Defensive end Jadeveon Clowney re-signed with Cleveland to chase quarterbacks alongside AllPro defensive end Myles Garrett . ... Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson, entering the final year of his rookie contract, was absent for the second straight day of voluntary organized team activities.