Josh Gordon - Pro Football Rumors

Clayton On Falcons, Gordon, Thanksgiving

July 13th, 2014 at 8:09pm CST by Peter Sowards

ESPN’s John Clayton has been covering the NFL since his high school days in 1972, and you’d be hard pressed to find a more knowledgable man or woman on pro football. His Sunday mailbags are a treat, full of wit and wisdom, and we’re passing along some of Clayton’s best responses to readers’ questions to you.

Clayton also touches on the Giants and Bills, the two teams meeting in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game and thus the first two teams to open training camp.

On the Falcons’ defensive line:

“The Falcons‘ pass rush has to be better. Their nickel defense gave up 6.48 yards per play and 7.75 yards per attempt and had only 23 sacks this past year. The return of a healthy Kroy Biermann will help. Former Dolphin Paul Soliai is a big, physical addition to the defensive line, but it’s unclear how the Falcons will use him. He’s a run-stopper who could draw an extra blocker, but he has only 4½ sacks in his seven NFL seasons. I’ll be intrigued to see if Ra’Shede Hageman can get into a pass-rushing role in the nickel. He might be a pretty special athlete.”

On the ramifications of Josh Gordon‘s impending suspension:

“If Gordon is suspended for the year, his contract would be tolled, meaning his deal would be put on pause and he would still have two years remaining when his suspension is lifted. His salary would not count against this year’s cap. Plus, the team would have the ability to try to get him to pay back the prorated amount for one year of his signing bonus, a total of $518,209. Gordon would count only the $518,209 on this year’s cap if he is suspended. If the Browns get the signing bonus back, they would get a rebate on the amount in next year’s cap. The bigger problem, though, is that the Browns would lose one of the best young receivers in the game.”

On the possibility of a team that plays on Thanksgiving this year — Bears, Lions, Eagles, Cowboys, Seahawks and 49ers — winning the Super Bowl, which hasn’t happened in 18 years:

“I did not realize that. Part of it is because Dallas and Detroit are the two traditional Thanksgiving hosts. The Cowboys have been an 8-8 team for the past three years and most recently won the Super Bowl in the 1995 season. The Lions have made only one trip to the playoffs since 1999 and never have reached the Super Bowl. The addition of a third game in 2006 hasn’t ended the trend, but it might this year. San Francisco and Seattle are two of the best teams in football. The Bears are contenders, and the Eagles might have the best team in the NFC East. Interesting thought.”

Browns Notes: Whitner, Gordon, Manziel

July 11th, 2014 at 7:36pm CST by Rob DiRe

As Josh Gordon stays in the spotlight for the wrong reasons, many fans and pundits (notably Cris Carter) have called for the Browns to cut ties with their star receiver, but one of his new teammates does not want to see that happen. Donte Whitner does not think he deserves to be released, reports Marc Sessler of NFL.com.

“I know all the dumb things people say — ‘he should be cut, he should be this’ — he shouldn’t,” said Whitner. “He’s a 23-year-old kid; he made some mistakes. A lot of people’s 20-year-old sons make mistakes. We have to help him, and that’s the bottom line. We have to help him collectively. It’s not going be one person that helps him, it’s not going to be two people that help him. It’s gonna come from the front office, the coaching staff, the players and his whole family. We have to help him — not only for football purposes, but for life purposes to get his life in order.”

Whitner also said that most of the team, including cornerback Joe Haden, have reached out to Gordon and that he is “very remorseful” over the situation.

Here are some other notes about the Browns:

Whitner also lauded how the offense is taking shape, comparing it to what the Redskins executed under offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, writes Sessler. “This scheme that they’re running on offense is some of the stuff they did in Washington with (Robert Griffin III),” Whitner said. “So if you get that running, you get the defense guessing, and you’re running the football well and throw the football around and guys’ eyes aren’t in the right place on defense, that’s where a lot of the big plays come from.”
Another Browns’ player who has been in the spotlight for non-football related reasons is Johnny Manziel, and Maggie Hendricks of USAToday.com writes that the rookie quarterback is a big winner of the return of LeBron James to the Cleveland Cavaliers. She writes that sharing the city with an NBA star of that stature will take some of the pressure off of Manziel, and will spread out the spotlight.
Whether it was because he is relieved to share the spotlight, excited as a fan, or just happy for his friend to join him in Cleveland, Manziel was excited for James to come back to his hometown. Manziel posted to his Twitter and twice on Instagram welcoming James back to Ohio.
While Manziel has his detractors, don’t count Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders as one of them. Sanders appeared on 105.3 The Fan with Shan and RJ in Dallas to discuss the embattled quarterback. “The kid hasn’t done anything,” said Sanders. “They’re putting him out there like he’s Justin Bieber — like he’s egging folks on and doing wild and rich folks stuff. He’s not doing stuff like that. He’s a good kid.”

Browns Not Likely To Cut Josh Gordon

July 10th, 2014 at 8:58am CST by Luke Adams

As he faces a potential year-long suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy, Josh Gordon is likely to remain a remember of the Browns, a source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. According to Florio, it remains possible that the Browns will decide to cut Gordon in advance of training camp, but it’s an unlikely scenario.

Gordon’s suspension, which could take into account his recent DUI arrest, has yet to be announced, so I’d be surprised if Cleveland made any final decisions on what to do with the wideout before that point. Still, if his year-long suspension is upheld, it will be an uphill battle for Gordon to return to the field for the Browns or another team. As we saw with Tanard Jackson this week, just because a player returns from one suspension, it doesn’t mean another won’t follow shortly thereafter, particularly if the player hasn’t taken steps to get help and stay out of trouble.

In the unlikely event that the Browns part ways with Gordon this summer, he’d be subject to the waiver system, meaning last year’s worst team, the Texans, would have first dibs at claiming him and taking on his contract. Of course, if a Cleveland team that saw Gordon rack up 1,646 receiving yards in just 14 games last season decides to cut the former supplemental draft pick, other teams may be equally reluctant to add him to their roster.

Prior to Gordon’s arrest last weekend, we heard that his appeal hearing was scheduled for late July. Although it’s unclear if that timetable has been altered at all due to his latest off-field incident, it appears as if we’ll get official word on the wideout’s suspension within the next few weeks.

AFC North Notes: Steelers, Browns, Gordon

July 9th, 2014 at 1:20pm CST by Luke Adams

The Steelers have been a perennial playoff contender in the AFC for the better part of the last 15 years, finishing below .500 just once during the 2000s, and winning two Super Bowls during that period. However, they’re one of a few AFC clubs, along with the Patriots and Broncos, whose title windows could conceivably close within the next three years or so, writes Field Yates of ESPN.com. In his Insider-only piece, Yates digs deeper on the three AFC teams, specifically focusing on Ben Roethlisberger‘s role in determining whether or not Pittsburgh remains in the Super Bowl hunt going forward.

Here’s more from around the AFC North:

The Browns would like to extend the contracts of quarterback Brian Hoyer and tight end Jordan Cameron, but given the complicated nature of the negotiations, there’s a good chance talks will continue into training camp and beyond, writes Tom Reed of the Northeast Ohio Media Group.
Sources tell Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report that Josh Gordon may ultimate receive a singular punishment from the NFL for his alleged failed drug tests and DUI, though it’s not clear yet whether that suspension will be for a full season. In any case, while some of Gordon’s Browns teammates feel betrayed after the wideout promised last year that he wouldn’t be in trouble again, every league official that spoke to Freeman believes Gordon will play in the NFL again, either in Cleveland or elsewhere.
ESPN.com’s Jamison Hensley examines some former Ravens who are still counting against the team’s cap in 2014, including Titans safety Bernard Pollard and Giants linebacker Jameel McClain.

Latest On Josh Gordon

July 7th, 2014 at 4:43pm CST by Luke Adams

Josh Gordon made the wrong kind of headlines once again this weekend when he was arrested early Saturday morning in North Carolina under suspicion of driving while impaired. Our Rory Parks rounded up several links yesterday dealing with the fallout of the Browns wideout’s latest transgression, and we heard this morning that former teammate D’Qwell Jackson and others close to Gordon believe he needs to seek help.

Others have weighed in today on the Gordon saga, debating whether or not the Browns should even keep him on their roster as they await word on his upcoming suspension. Here’s the latest:

Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter, who overcame his own issues with alcohol and cocaine, explained to Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer why he believes the Browns ought to cut Gordon. “He loves football more than anything, so I would take that away,” Carter said. “When I say they should cut him, I say that because I believe that will be the catalyst to help. When you’re falling in life, at some point you have to make a bottom floor and say ‘This is it for me. I’m going to establish my house on this right here. And I’m going to build up.'”
Carter added that GM Ray Farmer should tell Gordon that the team will sign him to a new contract when he gets clean and gets reinstated. “He needs to learn to live substance-free, and the team isn’t going to be able to help him do that now,” Carter said. “If he wants to play football, he’s going to have to show substantial progress in the next year for the NFL to allow him to play ever again. I’m not concerned about the Browns. I’m concerned about the team they put around him now.”
Cabot hears from a source that the Browns have reached out to several professionals and are in the process of assembling a support team for Gordon.
Former Jets head coach Herm Edwards disagrees with Carter’s assessment, suggesting he wouldn’t cut Gordon because “you’re not trying to shock the guy; you’re trying to help (him)” (Twitter links via Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal).
According to Tom Reed of the Northeast Ohio Media Group, now is not the time for the Browns to cut Gordon. In Reed’s view, the team shares culpability in Gordon’s infractions and needs to do what it can to help support him.
ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert believes that speculation about Gordon’s NFL career potentially being done is overblown, and says that the wideout’s performance on the field last season “provides enormous incentive” for those around him to do everything they can to make sure he gets straightened out.

Werder On Graham, Saints, Josh Gordon

July 7th, 2014 at 10:11am CST by Luke Adams

ESPN NFL insider Ed Werder reported earlier today that the Saints are expected to resume contract negotiations with tight end Jimmy Graham this week, but that wasn’t Werder’s only morning update. He has a few more details on Graham, as well as a note on troubled Browns receiver Josh Gordon, so let’s round up the highlights….

Sources tell Werder that Stephen Burbank’s decision to consider Graham a tight end rather than a wide receiver made the Saints star more appealing to other teams around the NFL. Somewhat lost in the dispute over Graham’s position is the fact that he’s still technically a free agent, albeit a restricted one — if another team is willing to give up two future first-round picks, it could sign the 27-year-old to an offer sheet and hope New Orleans decides not to match it.
As Werder notes, clubs expecting to draft in the 27-32 range in the first round next year could be top candidates to pursue Graham, since the draft-pick penalty wouldn’t be so harsh. Werder identifies the Patriots, Colts, and Falcons as possible teams to watch. However, he doesn’t believe the Packers would consider such a move since they value their draft picks highly and want to maintain room to re-sign Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb.
Of course, as Joel Corry of CBSSports.com tweets, many teams expecting to pick late in the first round don’t have the cap space to make Graham an offer that the Saints would have trouble matching. Of the teams mentioned by Werder, the Colts – with $13MM+ in room – are best positioned from a cap perspective.
As for Gordon, sources tell Werder (Twitter link) that some people close to the Browns wideout have been urging him “to seek professional assistance for substance-abuse issues” since high school. Gordon’s former Cleveland teammate, D’Qwell Jackson, is among those imploring those around him to reach out. “He needs help, he really does,” Jackson said, according to James Walker of ESPN.com. “He needs people to extend themselves and probably have to do more than they wanted to do. But if [the Browns] care anything about the kid, they have to do it.”
More Jackson on Gordon: “[He] was a big piece of the Browns‘ future; It’s just unfortunate he didn’t view it that way. He is so valuable. He doesn’t understand how valuable he is to an organization. He has no clue.”

AFC Notes: Ravens, Browns, Patriots, Chiefs

July 6th, 2014 at 6:08pm CST by Peter Sowards

A frustrating year befell the 2013 Baltimore Ravens, unable to match the high expectations set after winning the Super Bowl the prior season. The offense sputtered behind the NFL’s worst rushing offense and inconsistent play from quarterback Joe Flacco, and an average defense couldn’t make up for the offensive deficiencies.

Thankfully, 2014 is a clean slate. According to Ben Smolka of CSNBaltimore.com, safety Darian Stewart, fullback Kyle Juszczyk and offensive lineman Ryan Jensen are three players whose stocks are rising after the team’s offseason, while defensive lineman Terrence Cody, center Gino Gradkowski and offensive lineman Jah Reid are on the opposite end of the spectrum.

Stewart, with 19 starts in his four-year NFL career, looks to be the Week 1 starter opposite Matt Elam, Smolka writes. Juszczyk is a perfect fit in Gary Kubiak‘s offense and Jensen can play every position on the offensive line.

More news and notes from around the NFL…

As the fallout from the Josh Gordon saga continues, Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer suggests the Browns offer the wideout an ultimatum: enroll in a full-time rehabilitation program in Cleveland right now, or be released. Pluto points out that Gordon’s problems have continued from his time at Baylor and Utah, and it’s time to truly figure out his interest in football.
Patriots first-round defensive tackle Dominique Easley is making progress in his recovery coming off two torn ACLs in college, writes ESPNBoston.com’s Mike Reiss, who provides a status update on each of the team’s nine draft picks. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, drafted in the second round, has taken advantage of an opportunity afforded to him by the limited availability of backup quarterback Ryan Mallett.
Chiefs rookie running back De’Anthony Thomas told NFL.com that he’s a player nobody’s ever seen step on the football field, according to Pro Football Talk’s Josh Alper. Thomas also set a number of goals for the season, including winning Rookie of the Year, leading the team in a number of offensive categories and going to the Super Bowl.

Josh Gordon Fallout

July 6th, 2014 at 8:39am CST by Rory Parks

Following Josh Gordon‘s DWI arrest early Saturday morning, his $500 bond was posted by the man who was in the car with him at the time of the arrest, Haydn “Fats” Thomas, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. As Florio observes, Thomas is a convicted felon and “well-known hustler” in the Triangle region of North Carolina, which makes Gordon’s choice of traveling companions nearly as troubling as the DWI itself.

As far as the on-field fallout from Gordon’s latest incident, there are several items of note this morning:

Gordon, of course, was already facing a season-long suspension for his most recent violation of the league’s substance abuse policy, and his appeal hearing is set for late this month. As Florio notes in a different piece for Pro Football Talk, the DWI charge will technically have no impact on that hearing, as the league’s substance abuse policy creates a separate track for alcohol-related violations. However, Roger Goodell–or his designee–will certainly be less inclined to reduce the length of Gordon’s drug-related ban in the wake of the DWI. Furthermore, Gordon could face a separate suspension for Saturday’s arrest, which means that he is now not only more likely to miss all of 2014, but a portion of his 2015 season is in jeopardy as well.
Jeff Schudel of The News-Herald tweets that the Browns should still not cut ties with Gordon. The teams does not have to pay him while he is suspended, and not getting paid could be strong motivation to get clean.
Even before Gordon’s DWI arrest, Field Yates of ESPN.com (subscription required) discussed how the Browns might go about replacing him this season. Yates writes that the team should rely more heavily on slot options like Nate Burleson, Andrew Hawkins, and Jordan Cameron, as perimeter receivers like Miles Austin and Anthony Armstrong are big question marks at this point.
Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com tweets that Saturday’s arrest proves that departed GM Mike Lombardi was right to try and trade Gordon last season. Fitzgerald notes that Lombardi should have come down on his asking price.

Josh Gordon Arrested In North Carolina

July 5th, 2014 at 2:15pm CST by Rob DiRe

Josh Gordon was arrested early this morning in Raleigh, North Carolina under suspicion of driving while impaired, reports Matt Anderson of WKYC in Cleveland (via Twitter). Anderson has been following the story all morning, via a series of tweets as more information emerged from the situation.

Gordon was already facing a year-long suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. His appeal hearing was just set for late July, but talks were in the works for a reduced suspension to be agreed upon between the NFL and NFLPA. Those talks may be in jeopardy after this latest incident.

Our own Dallas Robinson took a look at the Gordon situation as a whole last night, and the different outcomes and possibilities that could be associated with it. Those plans could be further effected by this latest incident for the young receiver.

Despite missing the first two games of the season due to a drug-related suspension, the 23-year old receiver caught 87 passes last season, for a league leading 1,646 receiving yards, and added nine touchdowns. He was named as one of the two All-Pro wide receivers, alongside Lions superstar Calvin Johnson. His 1,646 receiving yards is the tenth greatest figure in league history, and his 117.6 receiving yards per game is the sixth best mark in NFL history.

Latest On Josh Gordon

July 4th, 2014 at 6:02pm CST by Dallas Robinson

We learned yesterday that Browns receiver Josh Gordon, facing a year-long suspension after violating the league’s substance abuse policy, will be able to appeal at a hearing in late July. If the ban is upheld, Gordon, whose reinstatement would come only at the discretion of commissioner Roger Goodell, would be barred from interacting with his teammates or showing up at Cleveland’s facilities. This loss of a “support system,” writes Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer, has some close to Gordon worried that the 23-year-old might never make it back to the NFL.

Sources close to Gordon draw parallels to Jaguars receiver Justin Blackmon, who was banned from the first four games of 2013, and then suspended indefinitely following Week 8 after violating the substance abuse policy; he is not expected to reinstated for the 2014 season. The fear is that without the encouragement offered by fellow Browns, as well Cleveland’s coaching staff, Gordon won’t be able to properly manage his life decisions, forcing Goodell to conclude that the young pass-catcher is not prepared to re-enter the league.

There is the possibility that this situation could be nullified by an agreement resulting in a reduced suspension. Gordon was originally suspended for four games last season, and although he was ultimately docked four game checks, he only missed playing in two contests. However, Cabot has previously reported that even if Godron’s ban was reduced to something like eight games, he would not be permitted to engage with the team while he was banished.

Without Gordon, the Browns will look to implement a run-heavy offense under new coordinator Kyle Shanahan, utilizing their standout offensive line to block for new additions Ben Tate and Terrance West. However, if Gordon is allowed to return to the field in 2014, Cleveland’s offense would be able to feature a true No. 1 receiver who could garner much of the defense’s focus. In just 14 games last year, Gordon led the league with 1,646 receiving yards, catching 87 balls and nine touchdowns. The receivers on the Browns depth chart behind Gordon include Miles Austin, Andrew Hawkins, Nate Burleson, and Anthony Armstrong.