You have to keep trying to get better

What's Jon Gruden been up to since being fired in Tampa Bay?

For starters, his day still begins around at 3:15 every morning.

As this article in the Orlando paper reveals, Coach Gruden heads to the offices of Tampa's Arena Football League team to study film.

As for getting fired, Coach Gruden, who led the Bucs to a Super Bowl, has a good attitude.

"You know what? Mike Shanahan got fired. Mike Holmgren is out of football. Brian Billick is out of football. That's the reality of it. Mostly though, I'm just really proud of working hard. I've always been taught you can only look yourself in the eye and ask 'Is that the best you've got? Is that the best you can do?'

And I'm not going to criticize anybody. That was the best I could do. ... In the NFL you've got to get to the Super Bowl and you've got to win it. That's the evaluation we're all accountable to. I wasn't able to get close enough and that's the way it is.

I worked as hard as I could work and I loved it. I feel a great sense of accomplishment, but I also feel a great sense of loss. ... I'm never going to point the finger at anybody, either. I'm good. I did my best. My body of work is out there for everybody to evaluate. ... We won three division championships; won 60 games in seven years; won a Super Bowl. It wasn't like it was total futility."

You have to keep trying to get better. I'm going to learn a lot about the spread offense, and about college football. I already know the questions I'm going to ask. I'm going to do clinics. I'm going to do appearances, but more than anything else I'm going to do research. I'm going to pick out two or three cool colleges that I think have great offenses. Great places. I want to go to Oregon. I want to go to Al Groh's camp in Virginia. I love the way Al Groh coaches that football team."