This story is the fourth in a series previewing battles in Browns training camp. July 25: Quarterbacks
Training camp is just around the corner, and still the Browns have no official word from the NFL on the fate of wide receiver Josh Gordon.
Counting on Gordon being on the roster for the season opener in Pittsburgh, though, is like counting on that check from Publisher’s Clearing House being in the mail today so you could pay bills tomorrow.
‘I didn’t think I’d be sitting here saying this, but there really isn’t much of an update,’ Coach Mike Pettine told The News-Herald on July 23. ‘We’re still in that holding pattern. We’re expecting resolution on it fairly quickly.
‘We know what option A, B and C is and we know what our plan is to deal with it. When that day comes, we’ll blow the dust off that file and act accordingly.’
Gordon reportedly tested positive for marijuana over the winter. He is appealing that ruling. The appeal will be heard by the NFL soon, Pettine said.
Gordon was arrested on DUI charges in North Carolina earlier this month. He faces an indefinite ban that could last more than a year for violating the league’s substance abuse policy at least three times, but the suspension could also end up being shorter than a year. Pettine made it clear the Browns are not abandoning Gordon.
‘He’s a Cleveland Brown,’ Pettine said.
‘We’re trying to promote a family atmosphere. You wouldn’t want to say that and then as soon as somebody has some things happen to them, you instantly turn your backs. We feel we’re in a position where we can help him as best we can and this is the best situation for him.’
The Browns have plenty of bodies at wide receiver even without Gordon, who last year led the NFL with 1,646 receiving yards. The problem is the contenders for starting jobs all have durability issues and none is close to Gordon in talent. Pettine said receiver is the most unsettled position on the roster.
‘Guys know those jobs are open,’ Pettine said. ‘I think that’s a hungry group. They’re smart and competitive. I think that’s going to be one of the better battles to watch in training camp. Other than Andrew Hawkins in the slot, it’s wide open.’
Miles Austin (11 games, 24 catches with the Cowboys last year), Nate Burleson (nine games, 39 catches with the Lions) and Hawkins (eight games, 12 catches with the Bengals) are all trying to rebound.
Former Redskins receiver Anthony Armstrong, who played well in Browns minicamp last month, was out of football last season.
Austin was held out of minicamp in June because he was not in football shape. He played in the Joe Haden celebrity softball game last week and said he is eager to suit up in training camp.
Pettine got the good news from trainer Joe Sheehan that all Browns players will be ready for the first practice on July 26, including wide receiver Travis Benjamin, who suffered a torn ACL in Kansas City last year. Charles Johnson, another receiver coming off an ACL injury, has also been cleared.
The Browns, of course, would rather have Gordon on the roster than not have him, but they also have the attitude they can get by with the receivers they have because the Seattle Seahawks won the Super Bowl without a star receiver.
Seattle’s leading receiver in 2013 was Golden Tate with 64 catches. That tied for 46th best in the league. The Seahawks, though, led the NFL in defense and, with running back Marshawn Lynch (1,257 yards), were fourth in rushing offense, so they could get by without a stellar receiving corps. The Browns do not have that defense or rushing attack – at least they didn’t last season. The recent offseason was dedicated to beefing up the defense and running attack.
‘We have guys on this team who have proven themselves,’ said Burleson, who last year with the Lions famously broke his arm in a one-car crash while preventing a pizza from sliding off the seat. ‘Injuries have held (some) guys back. So, I don’t really care what some think about the receiving corps. It’s up to us to prove people who think we’re good right and prove people who don’t think we’re good wrong. We’re just going to go out and make plays and answer those questions when the season comes.’
The Browns did not draft a wide receiver, despite knowing they will likely be without Gordon, possibly for all of 2014. They also cut Greg Little and Davone Bess. Gordon (87), Bess (42) and Little (41) combined for 170 of the Browns’ 379 receptions last year.
