The NFL could give Josh Gordon 55 more years to clean his act up, and the guy would never make it back to being a professional football player. His agent Drew Rosenhaus can call Gordon’s denial of reinstatement to the League a “hiccup” if he likes, but clearly the guy has football at the bottom of his priorities.
The reason for the once promising Browns wideout was a reported failed drug test last month. That caused the NFL to block Gordon’s return to the field. He will, however, get another look from the powers that be on August 1.
By my count that gives him three and a half months to clean his act up completely in order to resume his football career. The odds of that happening have to be at least
100 – 1. He has done nothing in the past two years to show he can get his life straightened out just enough to be allowed to go back to work.
Keep in mind some of the idiots who are currently still employed by NFL teams. Richie Incognito found his way back to the field after the debacle in Miami. Greg Hardy even had a paying gig last season. If those two guys were employable while Gordon’s been suspended, surely he can muster enough willpower to clean his act up to at least start getting game checks once again.
No one holds out hope that Josh Gordon can return to his 2013 form when he led the NFL in receiving yards. His prime is behind him. Players don’t get better by sitting out with no opportunity to even practice with a team. His skills have eroded no doubt. Making a roster and getting paid should be his focus.
Having his agent make excuses for his him isn’t going to help. Rosenhaus is bent about the leak that made the reported failed drug test public, so he has filed a grievance along with the NFLPA. Instead fretting over leaks to the media, Rosenhaus should worry more about the dirty leaks taken by his client.
The agent had this to say on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “Josh and I are very disappointed in the leak,” he said. “This is confidential information. This is a test result that would be underneath the limit to be considered a positive test. This is not information that’s supposed to be disseminated publicly. This is not information that’s supposed to be available. It shouldn’t be in the news. It’s completely  confidential.”
While I’m sure it sucks to have this latest embarrassment go public, it’s not the leak that’s keeping Gordon sidelined. It’s his refusal to stay away from substances that got him suspended in the first place. It matters not what Rosenhaus thinks of the correct levels of the testing that should result in a positive result. He doesn’t hold the key to his client’s re-entry into pro football.
Instead of complaining about the lack of confidentiality (this is 2016 guys), perhaps Rosenhaus should threaten to drop Gordon like he has done to Johnny Manziel. If Gordon keeps failing drug tests, allegedly, I fail to see how he can keep paying his agent anyway.
Right now, Gordon needs a life coach more than an agent. No matter how slick (slimy) Rosenhaus is, he can’t negotiate on behalf of a player who can’t get his foot back in the door with his employer.
It seems clear to me Josh Gordon isn’t a bad guy. He just can’t stay away from certain drugs. He’s not running around beating women or plotting murders. At worst, he’s just really foolish. Yet that’s enough to keep him banned from his profession.
Other players can get away with a slip-up or two, but Gordon got himself on Roger Goodell‘s radar. So now the only way to get back in the Commish’s good graces is to get and stay squeaky clean.
Gordon’s one mission should be to pass drug tests. Getting in football shape can take a backseat. Even if he can still blow by safeties, until he can keep his urine clean, we’ll never get to see it.