DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Josh Gordon

It could be a formality, but it won't be one if he is missing his drug tests.

Sounds like neither to me. Like Ytown said, it sounds like a formality.
He was moved to the non-football whatever listso that he could go do his thing... it would seem entirely reasonable for there to be a formal request process to notify them that he's ready to come back, and the timing and roster implications would have to be approved by both. While Goodell has final approval, i'd wager that it is more a rubber stamp kind of thing.

There have been a bunch of videos posted of Gordon working out at the University of Florida today. Could this all be a way to keep him off Hard Knocks?

i didnt see them .. thats best case scenario

https://twitter.com/rawerecruits/status/1023302596075900928

There is a thread of videos/pictures.

Gordon avoiding hard knocks makes a lot of sense. I wonder if they had flagged him to be one of the featured "stories" and then led to an anxiety attack and this entire situation?

thanks

I really am not getting the "Hard Knocks" explanation. Sounds like another excuse for Josh.

Just like YTown said on another thread about someone else.

"He's just misunderstood."

At this point ... we still have NO CLUE whats going on ... here’s where I’m at today ..

- regardless of what caused this ... IT SUCKS ...

I feel horrible saying that .. extremely sellfish of me ... its a mans life .. thats way more important than football .. will he be able to live a happy life or flush it down the toilet wasting away on drugs and booze ..

But i’m sick of this CRAP ... and i just don’t mean whats going on with Josh ... the last 20 years have taken a toll on each and every one of us ...

This one really hurts ... things FINALLY turned a corner TALENT WISE .. we haven’t had this much talent here since the days of the dawgs ... some want to deny it and slow play how much talent we have ... its the first time I’ve been EXCITED about our football teams talent since our return ...

And this will hopefully end up being a big old NOTHING BURGER ... but today ... im PEED cause i’m being SELLFISH ..

Jules said it here or in another thread ... to paraphrase ..

Being a fan of this franchise is HARD!

I agree w/part of your statement. The news w/Josh is a kick in the gut. This was the first time I even remotely believed him. Of course, we get more bad news and drama right before camp.

I disagree w/the other part. A man's life? Being selfish? The dude has had more chances that he has pissed away than just about anyone. You wanna feel sorry for--and help someone--go find a homeless guy w/mental illness or better yet, some poor child who is being abused/neglected.

There are people who deserve sympathy and then there are spoiled athletes who take advantage of their physical gifts and crap on everyone around them.

With all that said, I hope the situation is as some describe. Such as anxiety over appearing on Hard Knocks...LOL...right.

We'll see.

I simply find that too hard to believe; it's too complex a reason for his absence. Usually the truth is the simplest...

I try not to be cynical, but part of me thinks that rather than avoiding Hard Knocks, Josh has plans to make a Grand Entrance for the cameras ... The Heroic Return of the Wayward/Prodigal Son.

He is a WR, after all.

Its so hard to communicate on here ... so hard and this is another example of that ... same thing happend with bone on the PacMan thread ...

Yes, I feel sellfish cause i believe me whining about my football team missing a player cause we may not win as many games w/o him while at the same time he’s DESTROYING HIS LIFE ... thats EXTREMELY SELF CENTERED of me in my world ....

Hes destroying his life ... and i’m worried about a few wins on sunday afternoons ...

And yes .. i do feel sorry FOR HIM in the sense that he is DESTROYING HIS LIFE ... please don’t mistake that with “sympathy” on my part as to how and why he got here ... thats a BIG MISTAKE ... he did this to himself ... i have zero sympathy for that ... ZERO ...

I feel bad and feel sorry for all people that destroy their lives ... doesn’t mean I don’t realize they dug their own hole or feel sorry for them in that regard ...

He controls his life .. just like we control how much others crap on us ...

*L* ... u found a new “best” scenario ....

i really HOPE thats it ...

This is an interesting speculation and has become a common idea among some Browns fans. However, I am not so sure.

Does anybody remember Josh Gordon and his agent seeking out the limelight late last year, as a means to pump his "brand" and lay out the beginning of a wonderful comeback story? Does anybody remember articles like these?

Josh Gordon Is Returning to the NFL and Ready to Stay Sober. Do You Believe in Him?

Josh Gordon sat down for a number of these articles. He was no doubt asked a lot of tough, personal questions during extended interviews. He didn't seem to suffer any anxiety disorder during that soul baring process.

Since the strategy of the Gordon camp was (is?) to seek publicity and build the comeback brand, why wouldn't Josh Gordon WANT to appear on Hard Knocks? He clearly doesn't mind exposing his inner self to the world.

Now, maybe that publicity seeking strategy has changed. If so, why? If Gordon wants the big NFL contract when he hits free agency, pushing his comeback story in the media is essential. So why would that strategy change and Gordon now hide from Hard Knocks? What changed?

Or, the more likely and the more sad possibility is that Josh had some sort of relapse, missed drug test, or whatever - and THAT is why he is back in rehab.

Agree with everything right up til the last sentance ..

If he had a relapse of any kind ... missed test, failed test ... whatever ...

WHY are the browns so adamant saying he didn’t relapse ... thats the part that makes me think he didnt relapse ... THEY KNOW what happend ... if he did relapse ... why would we lie about it? ...

Still nada from the NFL ... its been what ... 4 or 5 days now ... if it was a failed or a missed test ... they would have made him take it by now if he missed it ... if he failed one they would have had him take the 2nd one and know the results of said test by now .....

Math don’t add up on that end for any kind of a relapse ...

At this point ... i just hope he comes back soon ...

Josh Gordon has a disease, BUT who doesn't have something wrong with themselves. Feel sorry for the guy- HELL no, he's been pampered his whole life BECAUSE he has God given gift- a body and talent to play football at unbelievable level. This gift gets him unlimited get out of jail cards....AND he knows it. Sad, he's got kid/kids and still has issues. These athletes, at professional level, make more money than 95 percent of people on earth.....many make more than a MILLION a GAME, but they are underpaid.....give me a break....says something about our culture. Josh, fix yourself for your kid/kids and do the right thing for once in your life.....GO Browns!!!!

I have a question or two. Josh took off right before camp after he was away for a couple of weeks.

So, let's say he did NOT fail or miss a test. However, is the NFL still testing him while he is dealing w/his anxiety issues? Could it be that he is avoiding further testing?

Oh ..... hi and welcome aboard ...

Hope u have fun and enjoy!!!

No clue bro ... none what so ever ...

I would imagine they would test anyone thats in the “protocol” and checks into rehab ... if it was missed i know he had too .. that i’m sure of ...

If there testing him now ... NO CLUE ... i imagine they would be but don’t want to talk out my ass about something i know nothing about ...

I see no reason for the NFL to “protect” him if he failed or missed a test ...

None of this adds up to me ... and i hate it when the math don’t work out ...

I don't know, either. I wish I did.

I get what you are saying, but the "anxiety issue over Hard Knocks" makes even less sense to me.

Also, the timing of his departure doesn't add up for me.

His past history are indeed factors when trying to solve this multi-stepped problem.

The fact that he has a history of lying makes it harder for me to believe the explanations out there.

Some things add up. Some don't.

Drama , Drama , Drama ! lol

Yup, fair point. This is the best argument I have seen on the boards against a Josh Gordon relapse.

My answer to your point? I just don't know for sure. There is a distinct lack of solid, reliable information on this matter - which is why we are all speculating so much and advancing pet theories.

The NFL does take its time announcing suspensions officially, partly due to its own in-house mystery process and partly due to HIPAA requirements. And if the League Office is keeping mum for the time being, the Browns front office would do likewise.

Or maybe there is no suspension and this is just something different and strange and full of puzzling mystery.

Here is what I do know...

I know I don't buy the "Josh is avoiding Hard Knocks due to anxiety" explanation. It makes very little sense and is thus quite unlikely to be true.

I know that the NFL delays drug suspension announcements for various reasons it deems sensible. There is a lot of intentional obfuscation by the NFL surrounding the drug suspension issue.

I know that while there are a variety of plausible explanations for Josh Gordon going to rehab, the most likely one is that he failed a drug test in some way. This is just the harsh reality of drug abusers. It is very hard to break that drub habit. Sad, but true.

But above all else, I know I am sick and tired of riding the Josh Gordon Drama Train. In the end, I don't care why he is AWOL yet again. I just know he is AWOL. Again. Enough! Gordon has missed 54 out of 64 (82%!) of his games in the last four seasons. Time for the Browns to cut Gordon and move on.

I have a hard time buying the Hard Knocks thing, and this is precisely why...



Is the next step in JG's recovery a return to the arrogant diva mentality?

"I've been doing all the right things. I'm a superstar. Show. me. the money!"

After months of he and his agent making it clear that Josh is not happy playing for 790,000... and then watching Landry signed to his contract (who talks about Josh like he's a God)... maybe it was time for Josh to let the Browns know (in no uncertain terms) that he's the commodity and they haven't respected that.

"I'm feeling like I need some time away to get my head straight, not sure when I'll be back."

The Browns are making it clear that he is not the commodity he thinks he is by talking to Dez, etc...

Maybe a little far-fetched but I wouldn't be surprised if this whole charade is about his measly salary. He has the wiggle room to walk away (and get his point across) because of his "addiction".

Thank you. I recently discovered DawgTalkers.net. Ironically, I found it by Googling for further info on the Josh Gordon rumors from the past month.

Ayup! Too damn much drama if you ask me.

Time to hop off the Josh Gordon Drama Train.

welcome aboard ... stick around, we have fun

Now this is a new and quite interesting plausible explanation for Josh's behavior.

I tend to favor the relapse theory though it has its problems.

The "Josh Gordon is being a selfish diva" explanation makes a lot of sense. I would rank this as my #2 plausibility.

I guess your better at math than i am cause nuttin here adds up to me .... ...

Thank you. I quite like the culture on this board in comparison to the forum for The OBR. I quit that forum a few years back in disgust over the brutal Manziel flamewars.

While the user and post counts are smaller in DawgTalkers, the community is more polite and well ordered from what I have seen so far. Good place for lively Browns discussion.

So there is something positive to take out of this situation ...

Think you are both off base - jmo - but firstly I don't believe it's the Browns or JG's choice to appear on Hard Knocks. That was forced on them. Depending on your opinion of Haslam - he *may* want the PR ... but coming off a 0-16 year AND the fact that he *seems* to have backed off all football operations .... then I doubt that too. Either way - this isn't JG wanting the lime light.

2nd - while it's all about the money, because this is JG's job and his only opportunity to earn BIG $$$ - it's also about a guy trying (hopefully / apparently) genuinely to turn his life of addiction around. Even if his sole motivation for that turnaround is to have that chance at a multi million dollar contract somewhere. . . he's still motivated to perform.

3rd - while it's real easy to sit in the stands and pronounce Gordon a dummy and numbscull because of his choices and what the consequences of those choices have been ... no-one has walked in his shoes to know how since High School everyone in his world has enabled and excused his bad life choices... when you are just an ordinary human being - it's easy to say we'd make the sacrifice needed to be in his shoes and then we'd have made all the right choices ... But the reality is just look around you and look at your kids or your friends kids - how many times do you see the most gifted kids struggle to apply themselves without constant supervision and mentoring and coaching??? It's somewhat of a natural characteristic in many. Where was that coaching and mentoring in Gordon's life as a kid? I doubt it ever existed. . . . Does that mean he's a victim (I can hear the haters alreaady) - no, he has to take ownership of his own actions and JG is what he chooses to do now he's an adult. But it's not like it's a switch you can flip on and off - and given that the guy undoubtedly has real and serious addiction issues, it's a long hard road. Every day is probably a challenge.

Lastly - I think we all watched (including JG) Terrelle Pryor mess up a good opportunity for a big pay check with the Browns. And how fickle injuries and luck can be - I have to think JG realises if he wants that huge contract (or as big as a contract as is realistic given the risk his checkered history presents) that he needs to play 16 games and be productive for 16 games.

I'm still hoping he is doing the right thing to give himself the best chance to be clean and focuses 100% on football. While I am not going to say I have 100% faith - I'm also not going to give up or assume the worst. There's a chance this is part of a negotiation - but I am dubious. And an aging, declining prima dona in Dez Bryant doesn't do a whole lot to affect any negotiation we have with JG imo. JG has the ball in his court - and it all depends on him performing every Sunday at the highest level.

If Josh needs time away to stay off drugs, then I understand this.

If he did screw up, I hope he beats his demons.

Since almost all accounts fall towards him doing this for his personal health, so until I know otherwise and until he does something that deserves my ire, I'm just going to wait and see. If the guy is truly trying, what would be the point of beating him down over this?

give it time

j/c

The NFL takes its sweet time making suspension announcements. I'm pretty sure teams aren't allowed to make any comments about such things until the NFL does. That doesn't mean this will end up a suspension for Josh. Yet it is a plausible explanation as to why we haven't heard about it if it is.

I think that given his introverted personality, it is a good possibility.