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Josh Gordon‘s year-long suspension for testing positive for marijuana was upheld earlier this week, leaving the Cleveland Browns without their best player in 2013. After hauling in 1,646 yards in just 14 games last season, Gordon entered the conversation with Calvin Johnson, Dez Bryant, and AJ Green, among others, for the title of “best receiver in the league”.
Then, another failed drug test. After missing the first two games of 2013 for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy, Gordon’s second offence triggered the year-long suspension he now faces. Josh Gordon has nobody to blame but himself for this situation. The rules are clear, and these are rules that he should have known just as well as any player in the league. However, are the rules fair?
Josh Gordon’s positive test for extremely low amounts of marijuana will leave him on the sidelines while Richie Incognito, a bonafide monster, is free to sign with any team and play in 2014. Following the Ted Wells investigation, Incognito was exposed for the bullying and harassment he led against Dolphins OL Jonathan Martin. Physical and emotional abuse that drove a young man away from his dream.
In week 3 of this season, Josh Gordon will also watch on as Ray Rice returns to the field. Until this offseason, Ray Rice was someone who I admittedly considered to be a model NFL citizen. However, seeing a man drag his unconscious fiancé out of an elevator after knocking physically assaulting her does a lot to change one’s opinion. Does Josh Gordon smoking marijuana, quite possibly in his own home, warrant a suspension that is at minimum eight times more severe than the heinous act committed by Ray Rice?
Perhaps it would help to look at another 1-year suspension to further highlight the NFL’s overreaction to Josh Gordon’s failed tests. The year is 2009, and after a few drinks, WR Dante Stallworth decides to get behind the wheel of his Bentley. Stallworth struck a man in a marked crosswalk that night, killing him, and was charged with DUI Manslaughter. Receiving treatment all too traditional to professional athletes, Stallworth received only 30 days in a county jail and served just 24 of them, but did receive several further stipulations such as community service and 8 years probation. Dante Stallworth’s suspension for driving under the influence of alcohol and committing DUI Manslaughter? One. Year.
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Let’s step back for a moment and not lose sight of the fact that, regardless of varying individual opinions, marijuana is a banned substance by the NFL. There is no grey area on the rule. To suggest no punishment at all would be simply wrong, and difficult to do without sounding like you consistently wear tie-dye. However, a movement towards treating Marijuana more like the NFL treats alcohol (certainly not as an equal, but in a more closely-related fashion) could make more sense going forward. Marijuana should remain a banned substance in the NFL until it is recognized as anything otherwise nationally, but it should not be treated as a dangerous, heroin-like narcotic..
Offenses for marijuana usage should be softened, but not to the point that the message is lost. Perhaps an escalating scale of fines and shorter suspensions, with mandatory counselling required for repeat offenders. The discussion of 1-year suspensions, or similarly extreme actions, should only arise when marijuana, like alcohol, causes an impairment that leads to a more serious offence. If a player is driving while high, carrying a weapon while high, or involved in a physical altercation while high, throw the book at them and make sure it is a hardcover.
Josh Gordon could have avoided this situation, and done so quite easily, but I refuse to agree with this length of suspension when put up for comparison with the likes of Incognito, Rice, Stallworth, and many others. Thankfully, there is a rookie QB in Cleveland to distract a starved fan base who has been robbed of their top playmaker. Should Josh Gordon, this villainous drug addict, be reinstated in 2015, it should be into a league with revised rules and a clearer message on discipline.
The Backup Punter 