Patriots: Should New England take another flier on Josh Gordon?

As the New England Patriots can attest to, Josh Gordon is one of the best physical talents at wide receiver in the game.

Unfortunately, despite his combination of size and speed that can be simply breathtaking at times, Gordon’s inability to avoid the temptations brought on by substance abuse has limited what he can do in the NFL.

Gordon was one of the best young receivers in the game with the Cleveland Browns, as he led the NFL in receiving yards during his second season despite playing just 14 games with an old Jason Campbell, Brandon Weeden, and Brian Hoyer as his quarterbacks.

Unfortunately, his inability to stay away from banned substances has led to a whopping five suspensions.

While the Patriots were only able to hold on to Gordon for 17 games, he showed off plenty of the skills that made him such a feared threat in Cleveland. Could they sign up for another round?

Gordon was informed by the NFL that he is being reinstated and eligible to play as early as Week 4. Should New England try to bring him back this season in the name of supplementing their receive room, or should they let someone else try to add one of the most volatile commodities in the game?

WIll the Patriots sign Josh Gordon?

Gordon has played in 17 games with New England, and he managed to just barely top 1,000 yards on 60 catches with four touchdowns. That production might be difficult to replicate, as it’s easy to pile up yards as a vertical receiver when you have Tom Brady as your quarterback.

However draconian and archaic you may think the NFL’s drug policy should be, Gordon still has to abide by them, and after several failed tests, rolling the dice on him again just for the benefit of adding another No. 4 or No. 5 passing option might be a bit of a risky option.

Not only would the Patriots need to make sure that Gordon can avoid getting suspended again, but now that Gordon is 30 years old, the odds of the player we saw in Cleveland (or even the guy we saw alongside Brady in New England) showing up likely will be infinitesimal at best.

Ultimately, it’s probably best for New England to leave Gordon alone right now. In a season all about providing stability for Mac Jones, adding someone in Gordon that is constantly in and out of trouble with the league could be one more distraction that Belichick likely is not interested in managing.

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