Gordon Reinstated

[mykc14]

Josh Gordon is officially reinstated! It's about time! Unfortunately his reinstatement doesn't start until after week 15 so he will only be able to play in the final 2-regular season games for the Hawks. I assume he will also be able to play in the playoffs, although the article doesn't say anything about playoffs. Also, he can't practice until after the Hawks week 15 game. Great news that he will be available for us, he is the possession receiver that we have been missing, but it is also frustrating that he only gets 2 regular season games and can't practice until those weeks.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/304 ... st-2-weeks

[c_hawkbob]

Outstanding! Having another weapon for the playoffs is a big plus.

And 17.2 average yards per catch is not what I'd call a possession receiver (typically 12 or less YPC). He's a potential game changer type talent, when he can stay on the field.

[RiverDog]

I had forgotten about Gordon. The fact that it took so long for the league to reinstate him is a real head scratcher.

Although we're in pretty good shape with our WR corps, having Gordon will present some real matchup problems as teams gear up in an effort to try to stop Metcalf, especially considering that we'll have him for the Rams game, the one team that shut down Metcalf.

[mykc14]

Outstanding! Having another weapon for the playoffs is a big plus.

And 17.2 average yards per catch is not what I'd call a possession receiver (typically 12 or less YPC). He's a potential game changer type talent, when he can stay on the field.

I agree... I wasn't speaking in terms of him only being a possession type of receiver more like he is polished in his route running and can be a go to 3rd-down type of guy- almost a security blanket for RW. If I remember correctly most of his receptions last year were on 3rd/4th down. I could be overstating that aspect of his game, especially since last year's sample size was so small. We'll see what he can contribute but he certainly is another weapon for RW and this offense. Hopefully we can stay healthy!!!

[obiken]

Whoopi!

[TriCitySam]

Has Metcalf size and speed and terrific hands - but he’s been out a while. We’ll see. I doubt you’ll see big numbers, but I believe he’ll come up with some key catches along the way.

[Agent 86]

OY! Looks like he is back on the exempt list.

https://www.rotoworld.com/football/nfl/player/1874/josh-gordon

[c_hawkbob]

I was thinking another failed UA but FB comments are saying he failed to attend some classes.

[jshawaii22]

We cut a decent rookie receiver, Penny Hart over this. I wonder if we can rescind that decision and put him back on the team?

[RiverDog]

I'm not sure how much difference it makes, but Gordon was never off the exempt list in the first place. He was was activated on the assumption that he would be reinstated and cleared to play but we were informed yesterday that he still "hasn't satisfied all of the conditions of his reinstatement". That statement is very broad and could mean something as trivial as not attending all the prescribed classes, but given the fact that he's been so dedicated to resuming his career and playing football again, my opinion is that it's a little more serious than simply not jumping through the right hoops in the right order. You don't endure what he's been through then fail to dot an 'i' or cross a 't'.

As far as the void created by Gordon's ineligibility, Penny Hart cleared waivers yesterday so if we can re-sign him, he should be able to rejoin the team immediately. We currently have just 4 WR's on the active roster (Metcalf, Lockett, Moore, and Swain). We do have 3 others on the practice squad (John Ursua, Cody Thompson, and Aaron Fuller) that could be brought up immediately.

As Hawks fans, it's a huge disappointment, but at this point, one has to be concerned about Gordon's wellness. He's stayed in touch with Pete and other Hawk players throughout all of this and reported in such great shape that it's obvious that he wanted very badly to rejoin the team and resume his career but he can't seem to shake what ever demons it is that posses him.

https://www.si.com/nfl/seahawks/news/re ... ahawks-yet

[NorthHawk]

The problem with players like Gordon, even though they are supremely talented, they need to be babysat to ensure they comply with the letter of
the conditions they play under. So Pete has to decide whether he's worth the extra effort and expense.

[trents]

The problem with players like Gordon, even though they are supremely talented, they need to be babysat to ensure they comply with the letter of
the conditions they play under. So Pete has to decide whether he's worth the extra effort and expense.

This. I wish him well as far as finding personal healing but you can't depend on players like that and that is the big problem. They'll let you down.

[c_hawkbob]

I don't think that SI article clears things up much.

First, I ain't buying that the Seahawks activated him, including making room on the 53 man roster, on an assumption. In one part of the article it says:

the league didn't announce he would be reinstated from indefinite suspension until earlier this month.

Which clearly indicates that we were in fact told by the league that he would be reinstated for this week.

In another part it says:

According to Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times, Gordon and Seattle were informed by the NFL on Tuesday that the veteran wideout still hasn't satisfied all of the conditions of his reinstatement

That makes it sound like perhaps it could have been something procedural like class time requirements not fulfilled (as I had read elsewhere yesterday).

And then:

Per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, Gordon has had another substance abuse-related setback, which led to his return to the commissioner's exempt list

Which on one hand reinforces that he was indeed for however short a time OFF the exempt list and makes it look like something happened just this week like (another failed UA) to get him back on it.

So we really don't know anything more than before reading the article ...

And SI used to be pretty reliable.

[Hawktawk]

I remember an interview I watched with his former coach in Cleveland . He said he's pulling for Josh Gordon the person but that in his opinion the man has disqualified himself permanently from playing professional football. "How many chances does he get"?

This was before Seattle signed him last year.
The man cant put the pipe down for millions of dollars playing a kids game The hell with him. Seattle needs to stop wasting their time on stuff like this.

[RiverDog]

I remember an interview I watched with his former coach in Cleveland . He said he's pulling for Josh Gordon the person but that in his opinion the man has disqualified himself permanently from playing professional football. "How many chances does he get"?

This was before Seattle signed him last year.

The man cant put the pipe down for millions of dollars playing a kids game The hell with him. Seattle needs to stop wasting their time on stuff like this.

We don't know exactly why Gordon wasn't reinstated or had his reinstatement revoked. All we know is that he did not comply with the conditions of his reinstatement, which could mean a lot of things, from substance abuse to PED's to some type of procedural requirement like classes.

As far as us "wasting our time", there was very little risk for a potentially very high reward. Personality wise, Gordon would seem to be the type of person that's deserving of our efforts as he appears to be a good teammate and a coachable player, so I don't mind our taking a chance on him.

[NorthHawk]

I've heard differing stories.
Was it another failed test or did he miss a counseling session or sessions?
That's what I meant in an earlier post about babysitting players that have problems.

[Vegaseahawk]

Apparently the issue was substance abuse related. At least that's what I gathered from this ESPN article.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/30585744/josh-gordon-return-field-seattle-seahawks-limbo-league-finds-wr-did-not-satisfy-reinstatement-terms-source-says

[Hawktawk]

Not sure how he could be cleared then not cleared by anything but a bad sample. My guess is he's randomly tested constantly and tried to use some masking system to continue using weed or whatever and just got popped. I'm pretty sure he isn't allowed to even drink alcohol as part of his treatment program. I've seen people throw away their careers in drug test jobs, walking around with fake pee in their pants leg so they can hopefully pass a test. I remember the guy from the Vikes who got caught with a whizzinator

It sucks. I was hoping it would work out this time.

[jshawaii22]

Pete announced today that although he couldn't say what Gordon and the team are dealing with, he did say that Gordon will remain on the roster in hopes of playing next week. If Gordon had been cut, that would be a different story. And the team got Penny Hart back to the PS today, too.

[NorthHawk]

Greg Olsen might play this week and Phillip Dorsett is out of a walking boot, so the passing game
might be getting an upgrade even without Gordon.

[RiverDog]

Pete announced today that although he couldn't say what Gordon and the team are dealing with, he did say that Gordon will remain on the roster in hopes of playing next week. If Gordon had been cut, that would be a different story. And the team got Penny Hart back to the PS today, too.

Although it's still not clear exactly why Gordon wound up going back on Santa's "who's been naughty" list, there remains the possibility that he could be on the field next week, which would be a perfect time for him to return.

We still have an outside chance at HFA, so we're probably going to be going all out in an attempt to beat the Rams this week and stay in the hunt for the bye, but win or lose against the Rams, there's a very good chance that our Week 17 game would be reduced in importance to that of a glorified preseason game. If we're eliminated from HFA, there's not a lot of difference between something like a 3 seed vs. a 5 seed, so it would make sense to rest a number of our starters, including Metcalf, who has had a couple of minor injuries in the past week and could use the time off. It would be a perfect opportunity for Gordon to get a lot of snaps/targets and let him get his game feet under him.

There's a lot of people upset because the league isn't being as transparent about the issues with Gordon as they would like, but it's perfectly understandable why the league is remaining mum. Especially if it involves drug testing, Gordon has a right to privacy over his personal medical information that could put the league in legal jeopardy if, for example, they disclose the results of a test.

[NorthHawk]

I saw a guy on TV last night (John Garafalo?) who said it was a failed test and that they are appealing the results in the hopes it was a false positive.
It seems like a last gasp effort to me. He's able to do some limited activities with the team in the mean time.

[RiverDog]

I saw a guy on TV last night (John Garafalo?) who said it was a failed test and that they are appealing the results in the hopes it was a false positive. It seems like a last gasp effort to me. He's able to do some limited activities with the team in the mean time.

I saw the same thing over in another forum. The only problem with it is that it doesn't take that much time to run another test, about 48 hours, and it would have been done automatically before they even reported the positive. But I suppose they could have drawn another sample and run it through.

[Uppercut]

Time to just cut the cord and any losses

[obiken]

Time to just cut the cord and any losses

I agree! He was a mistake from the very beginning

[RiverDog]

Time to just cut the cord and any losses

I agree! He was a mistake from the very beginning

Gordon didn't cost us a player or a draft pick. Outside of some salary, there are no losses to cut. It was a no risk, very high reward proposition.

[TriCitySam]

The NFL keeps a very tight lid on this stuff. I'd be surprised if this reporter has any inside info. It seems to me if it was a failed test he would not be allowed at the facility, nor would Hawks want him. He missed some requirement. We've gone this far I'd say keep him thru season and see how it goes

[RiverDog]

The NFL keeps a very tight lid on this stuff. I'd be surprised if this reporter has any inside info. It seems to me if it was a failed test he would not be allowed at the facility, nor would Hawks want him. He missed some requirement. We've gone this far I'd say keep him thru season and see how it goes

I, too, think it highly unlikely that any reporter would have inside information on the issues surrounding Gordon's reinstatement for one very simple reason: It's illegal for an employer to disclose an employee's medical information, such as the results of a UA, without their consent. Although I'm not a lawyer, it seems possible that even a person's attendance in classes and other out patient activities associated with the treatment of a medical condition could be considered confidential. The league and/or the Seahawks would be placing themselves in legal jeopardy if someone spilled the beans to a reporter.

Unless it's Gordon himself that is the reporter's source, I doubt that any of them have inside information.

[NorthHawk]

The NFL has notoriously loose lips regarding player testing, so it wouldn't surprise me.
However, like TCS said it's odd he's allowed at the facility which implies it's not a definite failed test unless it's under appeal which might permit such interaction under the CBA rules.

[RiverDog]

The NFL has notoriously loose lips regarding player testing, so it wouldn't surprise me.

I didn't see the interview myself, but apparently Pete was asked multiple times about Gordon and he gave the same answer: "I'm not supposed to comment on that."

Reading between the lines, Pete is saying that he's "not supposed to comment" because he's under a gag order from the league. It's almost a foregone conclusion that he'd be disclosing confidential information if he were to answer honestly. That tells me that it almost has to be a positive UA test or not satisfying some requirement in Gordon's outpatient treatment.

[TriCitySam]

The NFL has notoriously loose lips regarding player testing, so it wouldn't surprise me.
However, like TCS said it's odd he's allowed at the facility which implies it's not a definite failed test unless it's under appeal which might permit such interaction under the CBA rules.

I said tight, because we didn’t hear boo as to why the NFL took so long to reinstate him this year.

[RiverDog]

The NFL has notoriously loose lips regarding player testing, so it wouldn't surprise me.
However, like TCS said it's odd he's allowed at the facility which implies it's not a definite failed test unless it's under appeal which might permit such interaction under the CBA rules.

I said tight, because we didn’t hear boo as to why the NFL took so long to reinstate him this year.

The only thing we can surmise is that he tested positive for something other than marijuana. The assumption had always been that his issue was primarily grass and once the league revised their substance abuse policy so as not to suspend for it, he'd be reinstated immediately. When that didn't happen and as time went by and he still wasn't reinstated, it must mean that Gordon's issues are more serious than we had assumed.