The Las Vegas Raiders: Problem after Problem
Image Courtesy of Bleacher Report
By Jack Cherico
The Las Vegas Raiders have always been a team that likes to stay in the headlines. From Owner Mark Davis’s big personality to their rowdy fans, there is always something to talk about with the Raiders. However, this year, the Raiders have had plenty of bad press, with issues ranging from their head Coach to their best players.
Coach Jon Gruden was a super bowl winner, an NFL analyst, and the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, who gave Gruden a ten-year, 100 million dollar contract in early 2018 to have a second stint with the team. Gruden’s tenure up to this point has not been remarkable, with critical Raiders stars such as Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper being traded, as well as the Raiders not making the playoffs under Gruden’s control. The Raiders started the season with a 3-1 record and started pretty strong.
However, on October 8th, the Wall Street Journal reported that in a 2011 email, Gruden made a racially charged remark insulting NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith. The email came out in an investigation of the Washington Football Team, which saw Owner Dan Snyder be suspended for similar racist and sexist incidents. After the emails came out, more news broke that Gruden’s racist comment was not an isolated incident. More emails from 2010-2018 containing a pattern of homophobic, misogynistic, and sexist insults leaked. Gruden resigned from the team on October 11th, throwing the entire organization into shock. Las Vegas players were divided on the incident, with the NFL’s first active player to announce that he was gay, Carl Nassib, taking a personal day. In contrast, others defended Gruden, such as former cornerback Aqib Talib. Talib said in his podcast
“He is not a racist. Gruden just called me a couple months ago to congratulate me on TV and to give me pointers to help me further my career. You don’t have to do that kind of stuff if you’re a racist White guy… you’re not calling a young Black man to help him along in his life. If you racist, you not gon’ do stuff like that.”
The entire NFL has shunned Gruden, with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers removing him from their ring of honor, and EA Sports have removed him from Madden 22.
However, this was only the beginning, as tragedy struck on early November 2nd. Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs was reportedly driving 157 miles per hour in his corvette when he struck a Toyota RAV-4, instantly bursting the vehicle into flames and killing the occupants, a 23-year-old woman named Tina Tintor and her dog. Ruggs had a blood alcohol content that was twice the legal limit and is awaiting judgment on felony charges of DUI resulting in death and reckless driving. After these original charges were levied against Ruggs, Clark County prosecutors want to charge Ruggs with additional counts of DUI and reckless driving, both resulting in substantial bodily harm, as well as possession of a firearm while under the influence, a misdemeanor. Ruggs now reportedly faces up to 40 years in prison. The new charges stem from the injuries sustained by his front-seat passenger, his girlfriend Kiara Washington, and the loaded gun found in his Chevrolet Corvette. Washington was hospitalized following the crash and underwent surgery for a severe arm injury on Tuesday. Ruggs was about to have a breakout year, and his blinding speed always made him a serious threat. However, his speed should have been kept on the football field because a 23-year-old is now dead.
Quarterback Derek Carr said about Ruggs: “He needs people to love him right now.” “I will always be there for him. That won’t change, and I’ll prove that over the course of time to him. Not to anybody else. He’s probably feeling a certain type of way right now. He needs to be loved. If no one else will do it, I’ll do it”.
Finally, news broke Monday morning that Las Vegas cornerback and 2020 first round draft pick Damon Arnette would be released as well. This news comes off the back of a video that emerged over the weekend in which Arnette makes death threats against an unspecified person while carrying a gun. Also, Arnette is facing a hit-and-run accusation from a 2020 incident that left a woman unconscious and with $92,000 in medical bills. Arnette was allegedly traveling “at a very high rate” of speed to “avoid being late for a meeting” at Raiders headquarters, said CBS Sports. With this news, Raiders morale is at an all time low, and with all the bad news coming out of Las Vegas and the Raiders in a tough division, it is hard to tell whether the Raiders will persevere and make the playoffs, or crash and burn.
