The Josh Gordon Thread: Pats Officially Acquire Gordon for Fifth-Round Pick

Edelmania said:

No, we can't chalk up Josh Gordon destroying his career by smoking weed to addiction because he didn't destroy his career just by smoking weed, he also was addicted to and/or abused alcohol and some harder drugs.

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Has he been suspended for other drugs?
If so, how is that supposed to make me feel better?

tom444 said:

Not being a wise guy, I really didn't know it was a school of thought. Just sounded like the 1950s to me.

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No offense taken. In many ways, this IS the 1950s.

AndyJohnson said:

Great example how did that work out.

And hayneswieth has nowhere near the amount of issues as Gordon.

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It didn't work out. Obviously. It also has little bearing on whether or not Gordon works out, save for the fact that both additions carried substantial risk that BB decided was acceptable.

I simply disagree with your assessment of Haynesworth vis a vis Gordon.

AndyJohnson said:

Has he been suspended for other drugs?
If so, how is that supposed to make me feel better?

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I cant find what specific drugs all of his suspensions were for but at least one was due to alcohol not weed. Its not supposed to make you feel better im just defending Gordon because I dont believe his problems are as simple as a "choice".

Edelmania said:

I cant find what specific drugs all of his suspensions were for but at least one was due to alcohol not weed. Its not supposed to make you feel better im just defending Gordon because I dont believe his problems are as simple as a "choice".

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From what I have found online (The Sporting News has a timeline) every test he has failed in the NFL was for booze (post his DUI here in Raliegh in 2014) and THC. As far as I can tell, he has never failed a test for coke, codeine or any other pills he claimed to have used as a teen/college player.

This is why I find the use of the term "junkie" sorta out of place. Is he an addict? It seems so yes. But I've never heard anyone call an alcoholic a junkie and the only people who would call a pothead a junkie spent time growing up with George Hirliman and Nancy Reagan.

JackBauer said:

It didn't work out. Obviously. It also has little bearing on whether or not Gordon works out, save for the fact that both additions carried substantial risk that BB decided was acceptable.

I simply disagree with your assessment of Haynesworth vis a vis Gordon.

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You brought up haynesworth so you can’t argue it’s irrekevant.

Haynesworth wasn’t one test away from a second life time ban, not had he chosen to not show up 2 years in a row (after missing 2 full years) because he wanted to handle personal
issues and football would get in the way.

Edelmania said:

I cant find what specific drugs all of his suspensions were for but at least one was due to alcohol not weed. Its not supposed to make you feel better im just defending Gordon because I dont believe his problems are as simple as a "choice".

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So it’s been clearly established but you can’t find any reference?

His alcohol suspension was because he agreed not to drink yet chose to anyway. There is no evidence that he has an alcohol problem, that indicates it was any more than a choice.

There are people in this world who actually make bad choices and don’t have excuses to blame them on.

Wow .. this thread is all over the place..!! Addiction? Weed? Speculation on his other issues.? Judgemental comments by nink..?

Here's my take on the guys career.

Great player who liked to puff weed as self medication.. so what? Enjoyed a few cooktails ..so what?

He gets suspended for drug test for entire season.. huh.? Thc in your system could be a couple hits from 3 days ago. It's not addiction . So his great young career is screwed by NFL policy. Sucks and he has to deal with that stupid penalty.. I have empathy for the guy. Seems he just kept getting screwed since the penalties compound the situation and he's living his life on NFL "probation". For a tiny bit of weed in his system. Pump the brakes. If you're the guy getting treated this way , he probably felt persecuted like he couldn't do anything right. Prejudged, NFL heavy handed policy.. can't shake it.. never goes away.

So now.. move on and change the scenery. Absolutely can alter the course of guys career. New focus , new people, new playbook. He can use this opportunity to restart almost like a rookie with fresh attitude . He can basically erase the Cleveland experience if he wants to. He's still young enough.

Jackson 2 said:

There is a school of thought that subscribes to the theory that addiction is not a disease but, rather, is evidence of a weakness in character. Therefore, addicts are undeserving of sympathy and/or empathy and are responsible for their conditions. It's not a theory to which I subscribe, but many do.

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Sounds like some people are just uninformed assholes and calling this "school of thought" is a joke. Lets call it what it is.. "********". Might as well call flat-earthers people that follow a "school of thought" then.

robertweathers said:

He was here when Talib was brought in too. That dude was a mess. Guns, fights, Adderall, missing meetings....Once he got here he became a model citizen.

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And cashed in mightily in Denver too.

AndyJohnson said:

You brought up haynesworth so you can’t argue it’s irrekevant.

Haynesworth wasn’t one test away from a second life time ban, not had he chosen to not show up 2 years in a row (after missing 2 full years) because he wanted to handle personal
issues and football would get in the way.

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Again: I brought up Haynesworth because he's an example of BB bringing in someone with a less-than-sterling (putting it mildly) reputation. An example that, using Ninkovich's logic, would also "send the wrong signal."

Your response, of course, was oh well how did that work out, which is completely irrelevant to the questions of a.) what signal this sends and b.) what the probability is that Gordon pans out.

You're quite right, though. Haynesworth only had a lengthy college and pro history of getting in physical confrontations (aka beatdowns) with his teammates; was suspended for stomping the crap out of a guy; totally quit on the Redskins after having cashing in on a $100 million deal; was suspended by a team that would rather pay him to do nothing than put him on the field; crashed his Ferrari while driving >100MPH, partially paralyzing another driver; and beat a guy during a traffic altercation.

Oh, and then he was charged with reckless endangerment for trying to run another driver off the road (charges dropped), was sued for not paying child support, and was indicted for sexual assault after groping a waitress.

You know, after further examination, I think that Haynesworth might actually be worse than Gordon. Gordon may be an addict but Haynesworth was just a POS with no discernible redeeming qualities whatsoever.

Jackson 2 said:

No offense taken. In many ways, this IS the 1950s.

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In some ways, it feels like we're headed back to the 1850s.

Coolade2 said:

He gets suspended for drug test for entire season.. huh.? Thc in your system could be a couple hits from 3 days ago. It's not addiction . So his great young career is screwed by NFL policy. Sucks and he has to deal with that stupid penalty.. I have empathy for the guy. Seems he just kept getting screwed since the penalties compound the situation and he's living his life on NFL "probation". For a tiny bit of weed in his system. Pump the brakes. If you're the guy getting treated this way , he probably felt persecuted like he couldn't do anything right. Prejudged, NFL heavy handed policy.. can't shake it.. never goes away.

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NFL's views on THC have been exposed horribly given their reactions to beating your wife/gf/partner.

It could turn out like Haynesworth or it could turn out like Chris Carter in Minnesota, after CC failed THREE drug tests in Philly and was dumped for nothing. Carter was also at the end of his rope, and had today's drug policies been in place, he would have been suspended multiple times as well for the multiple offenses, before he was cut.

That's the wild best-case dream, and I don't expect that to happen, but I don't expect a Haynesworth-like crap-show either.

Palm Beach Pats Fan said:

It could turn out like Haynesworth or it could turn out like Chris Carter in Minnesota, after CC failed THREE drug tests in Philly and was dumped for nothing. Carter was also at the end of his rope, and had today's drug policies been in place, he would have been suspended multiple times as well for the multiple offenses, before he was cut.

That's the wild best-case dream, and I don't expect that to happen, but I don't expect a Haynesworth-like crap-show either.

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I expect Gordon to rise like a Phoenix.

The trade still hasn't shown up on the NFL's transaction wire. I have a hard time believing we'll see him play in a Pats uniform this week.

Why do 99% of threads on here devolve into political/societal arguments? It is getting ridiculous. We're all Pats fans - let's just hope Gordon can pass his piss tests from now until mid February. Let's hope he stays out of trouble. Let's hope the organization gives him a babysitter of sorts. Gordon has f#cked up a gazillion times and he's on his last chance. Hopefully get 12ish games out of him plus playoffs. Fingers crossed, GO PATS!

For varied reasons, y'all really should avoid talking about the nuts and bolts of addiction/"addiction", and about politics.