What is Jay Gruden's Net Worth and Salary?
Jay Gruden is former professional football coach and quarterback who has a net worth of $12 million. Jay Gruden served as the head coach of the NFL's former Washington Redskins from 2014 to 2019. He also served as offensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals and Jacksonville Jaguars, and as an assistant coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. As a player, Gruden played in the AFL for such teams as the Tampa Bay Storm and Orlando Predators, winning four ArenaBowls with the former.
Salary
During his time as the head coach of the Washington Redskins, Jay Gruden's peak annual salary was $5 million.
Early Life and High School
Jay Gruden was born on March 4, 1967 in Tiffin, Ohio. He is of Slovene ancestry, and was raised in the Roman Catholic faith. His father, Jim, had a long career as a college and NFL assistant football coach. Gruden has two brothers: Jon, who has coached for such NFL teams as the Oakland Raiders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and James, who works as a radiologist at New York City's Weill Cornell Medical Center. As a teenager, Gruden went to George D. Chamberlain High School in Tampa, Florida. There, he played on the Chamberlain Chiefs football team as a quarterback.
Collegiate Career
For college, Gruden went to the University of Louisville in Kentucky, where he lettered on the Cardinals football team for all four of his years from 1985 to 1988. A star college player, he finished his career at Louisville with 7,024 passing yards and 44 touchdowns, both top-five stats in the school's history. Gruden also led the Cardinals to an 8-3 record in his senior year, giving the team its first winning season in a decade.
Professional Playing Career
Gruden began his professional playing career in 1991 with the Barcelona Dragons of the World League of American Football. His greatest playing success came during his time with the Arena Football League's Tampa Bay Storm from 1991 to 1995. As the starting quarterback for the Storm, Gruden won four ArenaBowl titles, and was named the MVP of the league in 1992. Following his time with the Storm, he returned to the World League of American Football to play with the Scottish Claymores; he then briefly went back to the Storm in 1996. Later, from 2002 to 2003, Gruden played for the Arena Football League's Orlando Predators. In 2006, after his retirement from playing, Gruden was named the fourth-greatest player in AFL history.
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Professional Coaching Career
Gruden had his first coaching position in 1997 as the offensive coordinator for the AFL's Nashville Kats. The following year, he began serving as the head coach of the Orlando Predators; he claimed two ArenaBowl titles with the team in 1998 and 2000. After leaving the Predators in 2001, Gruden moved over to the NFL as an offensive assistant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Working under his brother Jon, who was the team's head coach, Gruden claimed a Super Bowl ring when the Bucs won Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003. He remained with the team until his brother's firing in 2008. During this time, from 2004 to 2008, Gruden served a second tenure as head coach of the AFL's Orlando Predators.
In 2009, Gruden became the offensive coordinator under head coach Jim Haslett for the United Football League's Florida Tuskers. The next year, he was promoted to head coach after Haslett joined the NFL's Washington Redskins. In early 2011, Gruden was hired as the offensive coordinator for the NFL's Cincinnati Bengals. During his tenure through 2013, he helped lead the Bengals to three consecutive Wild Card appearances in the playoffs. Gruden was subsequently hired as the new head coach of the Washington Redskins in 2014. He went on to lead the team to the playoffs in 2015, winning the NFC East in the process. Although the Redskins had another winning 2016 season, they failed to make it to the playoffs. Gruden was eventually fired from the team following a poor start to the 2019 season. Subsequently, he became the offensive coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2020. However, following a disastrous 1-15 season, Gruden was fired alongside the team's other coaches.
Personal Life
In the early 90s, Gruden married his wife Sherry, whom he met when they were both students at the University of Louisville. Sherry has worked as a real estate agent at Coldwell Banker and Matt Davies. Together, the couple has three children named JJ, Joey, and Jack; they also have a grandson through JJ.
