Jon Gruden is worried about football.
The former NFL head coach and commentator has gotten a front row seat to the next generation of quarterbacks for years, whether that was via scouting or his “Gruden’s QB Camp” show ahead of the NFL draft. And he isn’t a fan of what he’s seeing come through the college ranks.
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Gruden discussed the state of quarterback development from college to the pros during an appearance on the “Not Just Football” podcast with the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Cameron Heyward.
“I’m worried about the game to be honest with you,” Gruden said. “A lot of people think the game is evolving. I think the game is dissolving.”
In Gruden’s mind, the main culprit is a lack of communication.
“We’re just not communicating,” Gruden said. “I always use these three letters ‘RCE.’ You got to recognize the defense, recognize the coverage, and then you start to communicate. You can change the play, you can stay with the play, but you got to be a great communicator. And if you can recognize defenses, communicate what you want to do, you got a chance to execute.”
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The former coach has specifically taken issue with the absence of a cadence at the college level, pointing to the installation of a clap to snap the ball. It became the subject of a viral clip prior to the 2025 NFL Draft with now-New York Giants‘ quarterback, Jaxson Dart.
“When you just run up to the line of scrimmage, clap your hands, and hope for the best. I can’t take all these RPO bubble screens and high turbo tempo offenses with six false starts a game and no communication.
“I’d rather slam my hand in a car door than watch some of this.”
As for the root of the problem, Gruden pointed to player movement in college.
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“A lot of these guys are on four or five different colleges,” Gruden said. “I mean they transfer from one college to another. There’s no continuity and you know repetition is the mother of learning. You had to get into the same stance, do the same drills and the same defense for a period of years. And that’s how you master the techniques.”
Given that perspective and Gruden’s desire to coach, it would seemingly make sense for him to take a job in the college ranks. The former Raiders‘ coach is currently in the midst of a lawsuit against the NFL, alleging that the league deliberately leaked disparaging emails he wrote.
Gruden eventually resigned from his post with the Raiders and now works for Barstool Sports.
When asked if he would consider making the transition to coaching college, Gruden left the door open and admitted he has thought about it a little bit.
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“I’ll be honest. I met with a couple colleges,” Gruden said. “I don’t know about college football, honestly, with the NIL if that’s for me. I don’t know if I want to spend a lot of time raising money, but who knows?
Perhaps that door to coaching on the sidelines eventually opens again. If it does, Gruden said he’ll be ready for it.
“I would love to get into a locker room and start putting together some game plans again,” Gruden said. “I miss it, man. But, we’ll take one day at a time and and all you can do is prepare yourself for somebody to toss you the chalk and interview you.
“I’ll be ready if somebody does.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jon Gruden sounds alarms on football: ‘I think the game is dissolving’
