Josh Gordon‘s comeback in the NFL has officially ended.
The troubled receiver now has no team, as the Kansas City Chiefs cut him to slim their roster down to 53 players.
However, does this move by them mean his career is over?
A look into his past in the NFL will show if this move will end his career or give him a new life.
Gordon Has A Long History Of Substance Abuse
Gordon came into the NFL as the Cleveland Browns’ best receiver when they got him in the 2012 NFL Draft.
The former second-round pick took his career to the next level in his second season with Cleveland.
It was that season where he took the receiving yards crown, giving him the status of being an elite receiver.
Josh Gordon:
Pro Bowl (2013)
First-team All-Pro (2013)
NFL Receiving yards leader (1,646) (2013)
September Salesman of the Month (2014)— McNeil (@Reflog_18) September 4, 2014
However, things took a turn for the worse in Cleveland with him and drug abuse.
The following four seasons saw him playing 11 games, as he missed games for being suspended over substance abuse.
This sad spiral ruined the promising career he was creating in Cleveland.
His addiction kept him off the football field, as the NFL kept suspending him for violating their drug policies.
Whether this factored into the Chiefs’ decision to release him is unknown.
However, it’s something he needs help with and has talked about before to people.
Gordon Has Publicly Talked About His Drug Addictions
When Gordon had the chance to talk about his drug use, he laid everything out in the open.
During a documentary, he revealed his use of different drugs, shedding light on his addiction problems.
Josh Gordon made a whole documentary and said that he was on Xanax, cocaine, weed, and alcohol OFTEN. All of the weed heads in my mentions need to utilize their Google search. Dude is a junkie, as said. It sucks but it is what it is. I’m a big fan and TIRED.
— ™️Marcus (@TheMisterMarcus) December 16, 2019
However, it never seemed like he got the help he needs to recover from his drug use.
That addiction might have come from his mental health issues, another thing he’s open about.
While discussing Josh Gordon, it’s important to understand this: Gordon has faced mental health issues for his entire life. The demons show up unannounced, and they can be crippling. It’s a serious, uncontrollable condition. (1/2)
— Jeff Howe (@jeffphowe) December 21, 2018
With the facts before everyone, could this release give him a new life outside of football?
Gordon Needs To Focus On His Life
There’s no doubt that Gordon is a talented receiver.
However, there’s the fact he has issues outside of football that affect his football career.
If those demons he struggles with result from playing in the NFL, then stepping away helps him.
He can’t afford to allow mental health struggles to send him on a drug addicted path.
What he needs is support and help to ward off those issues, and help him recover.
While waiting to recover might prevent him from making an NFL return, it might be the best move for him.
He’s already made a mark in a good way in the NFL.
If he returns before making a full recovery from his issues, it will continue to ruin him.
Final Take
At 31 years old, he’s still got time to better himself first.
There are receivers who can play at the highest level even when they are 34 or 35.
So this isn’t the end of his career just yet.
However, he must put his past far behind him if he wishes to extend his NFL career.
Doing this is his only way forward as an NFL receiver.
