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Josh Gordon’s return comes at opportune time for Browns

Is it Sunday yet?

We ask because on Sunday the Cleveland Browns start a two-game road stretch against Atlanta and Buffalo where, if Cleveland plays well, could see the Browns enter the final quarter of the NFL season at 8-4 and very much in the thick for their first playoff appearance since 2002.

It’s also because Sunday marks the return of wide receiver Josh Gordon from his 10-game suspension, which can only be a good thing for a Cleveland offense that is struggling to get things going.

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Is Josh Gordon nearing the end of the line?

The news that Josh Gordon is once again in trouble with the law caught us by surprise – even though it should not have at this point.

When we first heard the reports that Gordon was stopped for speeding and arrested on DWI charges in Raleigh, we immediately thought the worse. We expected reports of radar readings of more than 100 mph and a blood-alcohol level off the charts. Then we read that he was going 50 mph in a 35-mph zone and was just a tick above the legal limit for alcohol in the state of North Carolina.

For a few seconds all we could think was that this kid just can’t catch a break. But the reality is that this is all his doing.

And now we’re worried that he is beyond help.

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On Josh Gordon, bad quarterbacks and misquotes

The Cleveland Browns made the right move on Tuesday, deciding to take the risk and hold on to second-year wide receiver Josh Gordon.

The NFL trading deadline passed at 4 p.m. and Gordon remained on the roster despite weeks of speculation that he would be moved out of town in large part because he is firmly entrenched in the NFL’s substance-abuse policy.

While the Browns are taking a risk that Gordon will not receive another suspension down the road, it was the right move to make. The team already had enough trouble putting points on the board and Gordon is one of only two players on offensive (along with tight end Jordan Cameron) that opposing defenses need to think about come Sunday afternoon.

We look at Gordon and a few other things from Week 8 in our latest post at The Cleveland Fan.

(Photo by Getty Images)

How should the Browns solve the Josh Gordon equation?

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon made one heck of a debut on Sunday in his return from a two-game suspension handed down by the NFL.

But even with all his talent, Gordon presents a particularly tough equation for Browns CEO Joe Banner, one that if Banner gets right could go a long way toward finally moving the Browns in the right direction.

We look at that and a few other leftover items from the Browns Week 3 win in Minnesota in our latest at The Cleveland Fan.

(Photo courtesy of ClevelandBrowns.com)

Tying up some loose ends on Josh Gordon’s suspension

It’s been a week now since the news broke that Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon was going to miss the first two games of the 2013 season due to a suspension.

Because the NFL Players Association does not allow for the release of the details over player suspensions, fans have been left to speculate as to why, exactly, Gordon is in trouble. To review, Gordon’s official explanation was the following:

“In February, I was diagnosed with strep throat for which a doctor prescribed antibiotics and cough medicine. Apparently, the medicine I took contained codeine, which is prohibited by the NFL policy. The policy terms are strict about unintentional ingestion, but the NFL has not imposed the maximum punishment in light of the facts of my case. Therefore, I have chosen to be immediately accountable for the situation. I sincerely apologize for the impact on my team, coaches, and Browns fans. I look forward to working hard in training camp and pre-season, and contributing immediately when I return in week three.”

There has been much written in the aftermath of the news about the suspension, with two of the better pieces coming here from friend-of-the-program Kanciki and this one from Mike Krupka at Dawgs by Nature. They both dovetail nicely with what we wrote earlier in the week, as Kanicki looks futher into Gordon’s background, while Krupka takes a look at the NFL’s drug policy.

After reading Krupka’s article we went back over the NFL’s Policy and Program for Substances of Abuse document (some title, huh?) to see if we had missed something and what we found helps makes Gordon’s suspension a little clearer.

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Is Josh Gordon already the Browns best wide receiver?

Just seven games into his NFL career, has Josh Gordon become the best wide receiver on the Cleveland Browns?

Well, the numbers seem to back it up. Consider that Gordon is:

• Second among wide receivers in receptions with 14
• First on the team in receiving yards with 333
• First on the team in average yards per reception with 23.8
• First on the team in touchdown receptions with four
• First on the team in receptions of 20+ yards with five
• First on the team in first-down receptions with 12
• First among wide receivers in yards after the catch with 102

Not bad for a second-round supplemental draft pick who only played one year of college ball at Baylor.

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