"I hate Thursday football" - Super Bowl-winning ex-NFL HC Jon Gruden makes feelings clear on early kickoffs

Former NFL coach Jon Gruden isn't a fan of Thursday Night Football. Gruden coached in the NFL from 1998 to 2021. He led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to win the Super Bowl XXXVII and went 117-112 as a head coach overall.

Over the years, Gruden has seen a lot but says Thursday Night Football is still one of the worst things the league has done.

“On a short week you really don’t get time to practice," Gruden said on Pardon My Take. "You don’t get time to familiarize yourself with the opponent’s blitzes, the coverages they run, the stunts they run up front. You don’t get a chance to study their red zone defense, their third-down defense.

"You don’t get a chance to look at them in goal line or short yardage. There’s very little preparation. And these guys are beat-up man. I don’t like seeing them play 61 snaps on Sunday and then have to go play 68 snaps on Thursday. It bothers me."

Gruden says it is tough for any team to be prepared for a Thursday Night game, saying players aren't completely healthy.

“It is crazy. I look at Major League Baseball, they won’t even let the pitcher pitch nine innings. I hate Thursday football, especially when you got to be the road team.”

In Week 17, the Seattle Seahawks beat the Chicago Bears 6-3 in Thursday Night Football, proving Gruden's point that Thursday Night Football doesn't come well prepared.

Jon Gruden wants to return to coaching

Jon Gruden hasn't coached since 2021 after he resigned from the Las Vegas Raiders. In September, Gruden said he's interested in returning to coaching, but says it doesn't have to be the NFL.

“Yeah, I’m interested in coaching,” Gruden told CBS. “My dad was a college coach, I was a college coach at Pitt, my wife was a cheerleader at Tennessee when I met her. Hell yeah, I’m interested in coaching. I know I can help a team, I know I can help young players get better, and I know I can hire a good staff, and that’s the only thing I can guarantee. But yeah, I’m very interested in coaching at any level, period.”

Gruden did work with the New Orleans Saints in 2023 in an advisory role.