Basically Simmons claimed ESPN wasn't doing enough to promote the site, somewhere along the line they suspended him as he was entering the last year of the contract. He wasn't fined immediately, ESPN did decide to dock him pay right before xmas. Then eventually they announced he wouldn't be offered a new deal, and he left. Now other people are following course.
and the TL
R to all of it is that Grantland is not that popular apparently.