Clark County, Nevada - Former Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden has taken legal action against the NFL in response to his recent exit from the league, after his damaging emails were released to the public.

Gruden (58) has filed a lawsuit in the Eighth Judicial District Court of Clark County, Nevada, as reported on Friday by ESPN.

The legal action was officially filed against the NFL and commissioner Roger Goodell specifically, according to Gruden’s attorney Adam Hosmer-Henner of McDonald Carano.

"The complaint alleges that the defendants selectively leaked Gruden's private correspondence to the Wall Street Journal and New York Times in order to harm Gruden's reputation and force him out of his job," Hosmer-Henner said.

Gruden resigned last month after emails he wrote containing racist, misogynistic, and anti-gay language were leaked in an October New York Times article.

His emails were a part of 650,000 total emails collected in a July 2020 investigation of the Washington Football Team’s alleged workplace misconduct.

"There is no explanation or justification for why Gruden's emails were the only ones made public out of the 650,000 emails collected in the NFL's investigation of the Washington Football Team (WFT) or for why the emails were held for months before being released in the middle of the Raiders' season," Hosmer-Henner added.

In response to the lawsuit, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said the league "will vigorously defend against these claims."

When Gruden sent his offensive correspondence to then WFT general manager Bruce Allen, he was working for ESPN as a color commentator and analyst for their Monday Night Football telecast. His employment lasted from 2009 to 2017.

Gruden had been the Raiders head coach previously from 1998 to 2001 and the Buccaneers head coach from 2002 to 2008. He once again helmed the Raiders from 2018 until his resignation last month.