Josh Gordon, Cleveland Browns wide receiver and savior of my 2013 fantasy football team, has found his way back into the news. And, as we’ve all come to expect, he’s broken the rules again.
Gordon missed 10 games in the 2014 season due to a DUI arrest. He missed the first two games of the 2013 season due to a failed marijuana test. He was also suspended from Cleveland’s season finale last year. He now faces both a one-year suspension after violating the NFL’s drug policy and an overabundance of critique, worry and hysteria. Although Gordon has earned whatever suspension the NFL gives him, he does not deserve all the judgment and criticisms he faces.
On ESPN’s “His and Hers,” Charles Barkley boldly stated that Gordon “is going to die if he keeps going on this road he’s going.” ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith said he was “done” with Gordon last summer. Minnesota Vikings legend Cris Carter, who has made a new career out of helping players with drug/alcohol addictions/problems, has never met with Gordon.
Gordon responded with “An Open Letter to Charles Barkley & Co.,” in which he explains his side of the story. “Yes, I have a ‘problem,’ but it’s not the one all of you seem to think it is,” he writes.
He writes of his incredible regret over his most recent mishap. However, he explicitly states that he has neither a drinking problem nor a drug problem. In fact, he explains that he has not smoked marijuana since before the Browns drafted him in 2012, and that the four drinks he consumed — the drinks that caused his most recent suspension — were the first drops of alcohol to touch his mouth since July 4, 2014.
Charles Barkley lost his brother to addiction. So, I can understand that he doesn’t want to see the same thing happen to anyone else, especially a talented young athlete with a bright future ahead of him. I believe Barkley’s words were too strong — saying Gordon would die if he continued his ways — but sincere.
Cris Carter, who was cut by the Philadelphia Eagles in 1989 after battling drug abuse problems of his own, has a peculiar relationship with Gordon. Last summer, Carter spoke out about the young Browns receiver, saying “gut-wrenchingly” that “the only thing that’s going to help the kid is if [the Browns] release him.”
Gordon’s situation is remarkably similar to Carter’s. He’s one of the most talented receivers in the league, but on the brink of destroying his young career — before it really even begins — due to substance abuse. Whether or not Gordon is an addict like Carter was, he may be banned from the NFL for violating the league’s drug policy.
Carter turned his life around with the Vikings, en route to a Hall-of-Fame career. He started eight consecutive Pro Bowls as a member of the Vikings, and was awarded Second-team All-Pro honors once and First-team All-Pro honors twice.
Cris Carter was using his own experience to try and help Gordon. Carter does not want to see any players squander their talents. Rather, he’d love to see those who struggle with drug and alcohol problems turn into success stories like he himself did. He gave advice based on his own experience, and, although it may not apply to Gordon’s case, I believe Carter sincerely wants the best for Gordon.
Stephen A. Smith, on the other hand, has been disgraceful in his analysis of Gordon’s situation. On ESPN’s “First Take” last summer, he explicitly said “you don’t shut the door on somebody forever … mass murderers sure but … you don’t shut the door on individuals with problems at the age of 23. That being said, I’m done with Josh Gordon.”
So, based on Smith’s own words, this 23-year-old football player is equally as evil as a serial killer. Nonsensical notions such as this make Stephen A. Smith impossible to listen to.
Then, after Gordon published his letter explaining his side of the story, Stephen A. Smith was brazen enough to bash it. Like a child who needed to get the last word of a petty argument, Smith called Gordon’s letter “pathetic,” and said he felt “sad for [Gordon].”
I understand Smith was asked about the letter on ESPN Cleveland with “The Golden Boyz.” But, if he were really “done” with Josh Gordon, Smith should’ve said so in his response, rather than continuing his assault on the Browns receiver.
I have no sympathy for Josh Gordon. He broke the rules, and he got caught. But who am I to judge him as an addict? Gordon’s letter could have been filled with lies from top to bottom, or it could’ve been the purest truth. I have no idea if Gordon has a problem or not. Neither do most people judging him, especially imbeciles like Stephen A. Smith.
