Who is Melanie Coburn? Ex-Washington cheerleader slams Dan Snyder for leaking Jon Gruden's emails
Jon Gruden's resignation from the Las Vegas Raiders may have put the former head coach in the spotlight, but nobody should forget the main reason why those e-mails were investigated in the first place.
The NFL investigated more than 650,000 emails from the Washington Football Team amidst reports of workplace misconduct within the franchise. The leak of some of those e-mails led to Gruden's dismissal after it was revealed that the former Raiders coach used racist and insensitive language against NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith apart from making vulgar comments about NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, women as league referees and even former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
The investigation into conduct malpractice inside the Washington organization involved accusations of inappropriate conduct by Bruce Allen, the former franchise president. Some of the victims of Allen's conduct believe Gruden's e-mails were leaked to take the spotlight out of Dan Snyder's toxic culture within the organization.
The NFL media to Daniel Snyder, "Did you leak the Guden emails to take pressure off of you"
Snyder to the NFL media— https://t.co/zWlMyDlPQH
Melanie Coburn has been one of the most vocal victims of the toxic culture within the Washington organization after working as a cheerleader for the franchise for 14 years and being a victim of Allen's conduct.
Coburn, while speaking to Fox News, recently accused the franchise owner of releasing the e-mails to portray Allen as an even bigger villain and put all the blame on him. The NFL recently denied sharing Gruden's e-mails with any outlet.
"I believe Dan Snyder leaked these emails," Coburn told Fox News. "I believe he's trying to put all the blame on Bruce Allen. [Snyder] sent over a dozen private investigators to my colleagues' homes across the country to show up on cheerleaders' doorstops and ask them what their relationship with Bruce Allen was. I feel like he's trying to pin everything on Bruce, and place all the blame for all of the bad culture on him, which just isn't true."
Snyder's attorney, Jordan Siev, denied the allegations in a statement to the Daily Mail:
"Any suggestion by Coburn that anyone associated with the Washington Football Team was behind any leaks concerning Jon Gruden is categorically false and part of a pattern of misinformation being spread by Ms. Coburn", Siev said.
Jon Gruden emails: What was Dan Snyder's role?
It's still unclear how Gruden's emails have come to light. Some of those were filed in federal court as part of Snyder's effort to compel Allen to produce the discovery in a different lawsuit filed in India. The emails were reviewed by the Daily Mail and are among the messages recently leaked to The New York Times.
Snyder and Allen worked together for over ten years in the Washington organization until Allen was fired by Snyder in 2019. Gruden's emails exchanged with Allen were revealed only recently, but accusations of conduct malpractice at work had become public before.
The petition started by Melanie Coburn pleads for the #NFL and The #WashingtonFootball Team to “do the right thing for women!” and release Washington’s sexual misconduct investigation to the public.
leagueofjustice.com/former-washing… via @LOJSports
Snyder had to pay a $10 million fine because of the toxic culture he perpetrated in Washington and also had to cede day-to-day operations of the franchise to his wife, Tanya. The two have been fighting because of Allen's severance — the owner was obligated to pay it fully in 2020.
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