If the Cleveland Browns want to release Josh Gordon, you can't blame them.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- It's very doubtful Josh Gordon will ever play for the Cleveland Browns, even if he somehow finds a way to pass enough NFL drug tests to be admitted back into the league.
I can't blame them for that. The Browns receiver is entering a rehabilitation facility. I heard that in the last few weeks, he was not as engaged with people around the facility. Suddenly, the Browns were worried about him.
Meanwhile, he was getting close to the end of his four-game suspension when something happened to trigger his decision to go into rehab. The Players Association works hard to keep this type of information private.
I do think this current front office/coaching staff has become even more frustrated and weary of playing the Waiting For Gordon game than the past few regimes.
At Friday's press conference, Hue Jackson made it clear that he was "done talking" about Gordon.
As the coach said, "He's not going to be with us. We wish him well, but we're moving forward."
The new front office and coaching staff quietly cut Johnny Manziel last spring. It quietly traded Justin Gilbert to Pittsburgh, where he has yet to play a defensive snap.
My guess is Gordon will be gone at some point. In the meantime, he needs to work on his addiction problems. As I recently wrote, that starts with admitting he has an addiction problem -- something he has refused to do in the past. This is at least his third trip to rehab.
I received this email about Gordon from Scott Snowden of Laurel, Montana:
"I find myself conflicted today as those who have the 'serves him right!' attitude that I felt towards Johnny Party-boy... but I'm not feeling that way at all. Instead, I find myself looking at this team and asking, 'When did they become good enough to give up on pro-bowl talent?'
"The last I checked, they're 0-3 and I'm hoping that they don't go 0-16 like the experts have predicted. The other thing that bothers me is that the team has made mistake after mistake since 1999 and has continually come to the fans asking for forgiveness and another chance to get things right... and the fans have stuck with them.
"I'm no bleeding heart, but I feel we should be treating Josh the same way. There's nothing to lose."
A few thoughts:
1. Is he really a "Pro Bowl talent." By that, I mean Pro Bowl goes beyond physical ability. A big part of being a pro is reliability and durability. Gordon has neither of those traits.
2. Gordon has not appeared in a regular season game since 2014. If you look back at those five games, he performed poorly. He didn't learn the playbook. He didn't show up for the flight for the last game -- and was suspended by the team.
3. His last and only good season was 2013, and he was suspended for two games that year.
4. How desperate is he to really get back on the field? How serious is he about dealing with his addiction problem? These are huge questions, none of which he's answered the right way in the last three years.
5. Yes, the Browns have given the fans migraines. But how has Gordon treated the Browns ... and yes, the fans who stick by him? He has teased and frustrated so many coaches, teammates and fans over the last few years.
ABOUT THE KICKERS
Why did the Browns sign Cody Parkey to kick last weekend?
The new front office prefers to find younger players who could end up being long-term fits with the team. The 26-year-old Parkey was on their list of possible kicker replacements after he was cut in training camp by Philadelphia.
After doing some homework on the decision, I can't make a major second-guess.
Here's what happened:
1. In 2014, Parkey made the Pro Bowl as a rookie. He was 32-of-36 on field goals, perfect on extra points and 4-of-4 from at least 50 yards. He opened the 2015 season with the Eagles, made 3-of-4 field goals. Then he suffered a major groin injury that required surgery. He was out for the rest of the year.
2. Philadelphia replaced Parkey with Caleb Sturgis. He made 18-of-22 field goals. The Eagles liked him. They brought Parkey to training camp, but Sturgis had the job. Parkey had only one field goal attempt in the preseason -- and he made it.
3. The Eagles cut Parkey, keeping Sturgis. Had Parkey been available at the start of training camp, the Browns would have signed him to compete with Patrick Murray. They have liked Parkey for a while.
4. Murray injured his knee during last Friday's practice. Parkey was brought in for a physical. He was signed and never even worked out with his regular holder and long snapper until right before the Miami game.
5. Parkey was 3-of-6 on field goals in that game, a 30-24 overtime loss. The Browns still like him and didn't believe he was given a fair shot because of no real practice time with the team. So he gets another week.
6. The Browns did consider former Chicago Bear kicker Robbie Gould. He is Chicago's all-time leading scorer, but he was cut right before regular season. He missed two extra points in his final preseason game -- against the Browns. One was blocked.
7. The Browns could have signed Gould for about $350,000 more than what they gave Parkey. Money was not an issue because Gould had cleared waivers and was a free agent.
8. The Browns thought Parkey was a better bet than Gould. When you are grabbing kickers at the last minute who are unsigned, that's what you're doing -- making a bet.
9. The season is heading into the fourth week. No other team has brought in Gould, so there must be some concerns about him.
10. It's amazing how Parkey was put in position to attempt six field goals. SIX in one game! There are 32 NFL teams. Only 13 kickers have attempted more than six field goals for the entire season.
11. It's been that kind of year for the Browns. Most kickers attempt about two field goals per game. Parkey signed right off the street with no practice time and ends up having to kick six.
Here's what the Chicago Tribune's Brad Biggs wrote about Gould:
"Gould, 34, was due to earn $3 million in base salary this season and had a $500,000 roster bonus. After he was shaky in the preseason, the Bears decided to make a move...
"Gould was 5-for-6 on field goals in the preseason but missed two extra points in the exhibition finale in Cleveland. The second one was blocked after what looked to be a poor snap.
"Gould had a rough patch last season after starting on a tear by making his first 15 field-goal attempts. Gould missed a 36-yarder wide left as regulation time expired in a 26-20 overtime loss to the 49ers at Soldier Field on Dec. 20. A week later, his 50-yard try with 1:40 remaining was wide right in a 24-21 loss to the Redskins, also at home."
ABOUT ALVIN BAILEY
The Browns are not expected to start Alvin Bailey this week.
John Greco told the media he's moving back to his usual right guard spot for the Washington game.
Greco had played center in place of the injured Cameron Erving in last week's 30-24 overtime loss in Miami. Bailey started in Greco's right guard spot.
Bailey was arrested after Sunday's game and charged with OVI, speeding, and having drug paraphernalia. His sobriety test was .145, well above the legal limit of .08 for driving in Ohio.
The Browns signed Austin Reiter from Washington's practice squad. He was a seventh-round pick by Washington in 2015 and spent all of last season on Washington's practice squad. He is expected to start in Washington.
Bailey signed a three-year, $6 million deal with the Browns. He received a $1 million signing bonus, and has another $1 million guaranteed. So he's not a big investment. The Browns believe he is a viable NFL linemen, but they don't want any more incidents like this from him.
ABOUT THE BROWNS
1. Part of this season is about the Browns finding players discarded by other teams who could fit with the team. Smart teams find value on the waiver wire and undrafted free agents.
2. The Browns claimed defensive lineman Stephen Paea on waivers from Washington. He was a backup nose tackle to Danny Shelton in the opener. In the last two games, he moved to end in the 3-4 set.
3. Profootballfocus on Paea: "Over the last two games, he has one QB hit and five hurries on 24 pass rushes. He has been by far Cleveland's best interior pass rusher on the season."
4. When Briean Boddy-Calhoun picked off a Ryan Tannehill pass and ran it back for a touchdown, the play was set up by Tyrone Holmes. The defensive end from Montana hit Tannehill as he threw.
5. The Browns claimed Calhoun and Holmes on waivers from Jacksonville. Holmes has had some nice moments as a pass rusher. He led all of FCS (the old NCAA Division 1-AA) with 18.5 sacks last season. That's what interested the Browns.
6. Corey Lemonier sacked Tannehill and recovered a fumble to give the ball to the Browns near the end of regulation. The Browns picked him up after he was cut by San Francisco.
7. You don't build a good team with discards from other rosters. But you can find useful players. The Miami game showed how four of them helped the Browns.