The NFL has suspended Josh Gordon indefinitely for violating the league’s policies on performance-enhancing substances and substances of abuse. Gordon will not suit up for the Seahawks’ final regular season games, nor their postseason game(s), and it’s possible that he’ll never take the gridiron again. 
It’s a sadly familiar refrain for Gordon, who has been suspended repeatedly throughout his NFL career. The Seahawks saw flashes of the old Flash this season and Gordon, at last check, was excited about the possibility of returning for 2020.
“Seattle is amazing,” the wide receiver said. “Football aside, I’d definitely love to live in a place like this.”
The feeling, just a few short days ago, was mutual.
“Josh has had huge games in the past,’’ head coach Pete Carroll said. “He just hasn’t gotten the ball enough yet to show that for us. But he’s done really well. Josh has been a really good guy around here in practicing and working hard and studying.”
All of that is on hold, as the wide receiver is set to do battle with the league office and his own off-the-field issues once again.
Since joining the Seahawks in early November, Gordon caught just seven passes for 139 yards and zero touchdowns. It’s a far cry from his best work, including a 2014 season in which he had 87 receptions for 1,646 yards and nine touchdowns in 14 games with the Browns. It’s also a step down from his production with the Patriots (20/287/1 in six games), but Gordon showed promise, too. On Sunday against the Panthers, he torched the secondary for a spectacular 58-yard grab in the second quarter. He also lobbed a trick pass directly into the arms of safety Tre Boston, but the Seahawks still managed to come away with a 30-24 win.
At this moment, there’s only one number that truly matters: Five. That’s the number of times Gordon has been suspended for substance abuse. He’s successfully begged for the NFL’s forgiveness in the past, but this ban just might be the final straw.
And career ending. Unbelievable how many times he got a chance.
If this is just weed, the suspension policy is lamentable. It’s no more of the NFL’s business if players smoke weed than if they have a beer after the game.
PED’s is another matter. Just a silly cycle the NFL put Josh Gordon on since he entered the league. When you watch him play, it’s clear that marijuana is not affecting his ability to play well.
The “it’s not affecting his ability to play well” argument is pretty weak. Gambling, beating on a former girlfriend or robbing a liquor store probably don’t affect game performance either but they are illegal activities so a suspension is warranted.
Are you implying that ingesting marijuana is on par with gambling, theft, and violent crimes?
Even if weed is legalized,a business can still test ya and chose not to employ ya because of it.
thats like suggesting marajuana has no effect on the body, which is simply not true.
Players are allowed to drink. Players are allowed to ingest terrifying pain killers and to submit to limb numbing local anaesthetics. Players suffer hits to the cranium (granted the league is trying to push back against helmet to helmet contact).
Marijuana use is the least of the medical issues facing a NFL player. Sometimes the PFR comment section feels like a gathering of the Applachian hillbillies club or the Arizona elderly ladies bridge association. Do you people get out? Have you seen a modern city or visited a high school in the last ten years?
Now we know why the Patriots had had enough. It’s a shame. What a wasted talent.
Geez. Am I mistaken or is there only so many of these failures before your suspended for life? Or was that just PEDs in baseball?
They just do indefinite, so you *can* be reinstated.
Breaking news lol. It’s.not all that surprising.
Someone who fails this much should have no problem getting a job with ESPN.
Or CNN
MSNBC
Fox News. Fits right in. You have to be on drugs to support them or extremely stupid.
You must love CNN
They’re all biased. While MSNBC and FoxNews are moreso, to ignore any of their biases is to reject sound logic. Covering news events with more nuance and no sensationalism is the way to digest news. Unfortunately, appealing to our cerebral side and not our visceral does not seem profitable, so news media avoids that.
Who still watches mainstream media news of any kind?
Forreal tho
You are the stupid one to believe all of the fake news channels
Shut up Paddyo and go ask your mom to make some avocado toast
Your comment represent a common fallacy, yet it’s expected on a comment board on the internet. Don’t blow anyone away with deep thoughts.
Represents*
Or FauxNews
FoxNoise
Clinton
News
Network
Founded by Turner, a more rational version(and less predatory) than Ailes.
What a waste on such great talent. He’s a joke!! Good luck in the XFL, Arena, it Canadian football league
Arena is no longer
The man is an addict. I feel for him that he can’t get clean, but he’s not the only one in the world with this issue. I hope he can clean up and make a difference down the line in youth football or just being a mentor.
Sad. Just sad. I hope he gets the help he needs…..
He’s gotten that help, over and over and over and over. He has zero desire to stop. That much is obvious.
Seahawks reaching out to AB next? I remember them saying he was second option if they couldn’t claim Gordon.
NFL isn’t done with its investigation, he’s still suspended
Must be awesome to be a pro fb player. They can do drugs numerous times before they lose their job. In my world one time and I’d be fired. But in the NFL they don’t even get suspended til what?? The 2/3rd offense??/ Then they can do it a few more times before they lose their job. How STUPID do they have to be to waste chances to be millionaires for playing a game??? They can make more $$ in 6 years than most of us can in 30/40 years , yet so many piss it away ( either the $$ or the chances)
Now say it without crying
Because they are addicts. I guess you missed the memo on addiction. It doesn’t matter how much money you make or what your job is.
If you were part of the elite elite in any industry, you would get just as many if not more chances to be employed.
Shout out to MLB for killing their weed testing. The NFL looks worse every time the suspend dudes for this.
Uh…..PEDs? Or didn’t you read?
How do you know that weed is his only problem?
I wonder if Robert Kraft’s pledge to pay for all his addiction treatments still holds? That happened right? I didn’t imagine that…
The pledge probably still holds if Gordon is willing to work as a videographer.
Because if it’s just weed, that’s not hard to stop if a person wants too.
I can hear people saying “man, I really thought THIS time he’d make it.”
Just like the last 3 times.
Can’t believe it took this long…..
This is just plain idiotic! And anyone saying that “He’s an addict and he needs help” that’s BS too! He has gotten help again and again and again and drugs are more important. Speaking as a past addict I can truly say there comes a time where you have to WANT the help and you make a decision. For me it was my children and wife, for Gordon you would think it would be football and the millions that would not only help him but generations of his family as well. But drugs were more important and he chose this for himself. I truly hope this is the last straw b/c he’s making a mockery of the drug policy of the NFL. Good luck and God Speed Gordon but I hope you don’t play another snap of football!
As a continuously recovering addict you would think you of all people would understand the grip that an addiction of any kind can hold on you.
Congrats you kicked your habit, but you are still a recovering addict. Who are you to judge
Because also a division 1 college football player I also understand that what he is doing for a living is an absolute privilege that many people work their entire young adult lives to get to and after SIX CHANCES that he has had plenty of opportunities to decide that this privilege is more important than putting something in your nose or your arm or your mouth and swallowing! I’m not being judgemental or saying to go draw and quarter the man! I’m simply saying his chances of continuing this career should be done and over with.
I agree, he’s had far to many chances. More than he would have received in the real world
My sister fought and defeated addiction and I know how incredibly hard it was for her. This young man needs to forget football for the time being, and focus on saving his life. Believe it or not, your life has more value than any amount of money.
he was given way to many chances in the first place and every time he just never was serious about playing enough to stay within the rules . it’s sad he was a really good player but he should be banned for life now . hopefully he gets clean and stays in football and maybe he can help others learn from his mistakes
Possibly go and do what Ryan Leaf is doing now. Talking to kids about the dangers of addiction.
So basically the kids are spending so much time trying to figure out just who the heck Ryan Leaf is…that they don’t have time to get addicted.
Sadly the only thing his career will end up being is one hell of documentary about it being a sad what if he could have stayed clean
The dude doesn’t want to give up the weed he just needs to take the millions he made open up a dispensary and play flag football for parks and recs and in 5 years he can tell all his friends of who he was.
this guy needs to accept that he should spend his time recovering, not playing football.