Carl Nassib is understandably distraught.
The Las Vegas Raiders granted him a day off Wednesday after the release of Jon Gruden’s old emails, including messages that used homophobic language.
“(Nassib) and I spoke yesterday a couple times, spoke again today, we’re gonna meet later this afternoon,” Raiders general manager Mike Mayock told reporters. “He requested a personal day today. He just said he’s got a lot to process, there’s a lot that’s been going on the last few days, and of course we support that request.”
On Monday, Gruden resigned as Raiders head coach after the New York Times reported emails he had that contained racist, homophobic, and misogynistic language. The league discovered the messages while investigating the Washington Football Team’s workplace culture. Gruden wrote them while working for ESPN as a Monday Night Football broadcaster.
Mayock added that he’s “sad for the whole Gruden family” but added, “We’re all accountable for our actions.”
“At the end of the day, our jobs are to win football games and we got to get our focus back there,” Mayock said. “That might sound cold and it might sound calculating, but at the end of the day, that’s our job. I think what’s cool about our players is they’re able to compartmentalize a little bit and I think most of them are saying, ‘Hey, we’re all-in, we got a big frigging game this weekend and we got to go win it.'”
The Raiders will take on the Denver Broncos in Week 6, with both teams being 3-2 headed into the contest.
