Suspended Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon remains in NFL purgatory with no guarantee he’ll ever escape.
The NFL rejected Gordon’s bid for reinstatement into the league on Tuesday.
“His petition was denied,” NFL vice president of communications Brian McCarthy confirmed in an email. “He may re-apply later in the year.”
A source familiar with the situation confirmed Gordon cannot apply for reinstatement again until Aug. 1. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the situation. McCarthy declined to comment on a timeline for when Gordon would be eligible to re-apply.
Even if Gordon were to submit another application Aug. 1, it doesn’t mean he’ll be back in the league then because NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will need time to render a decision on the case.
When a banished player like Gordon files for reinstatement, the league attempts to gather the necessary information to make a ruling within 60 days of receiving the application, but there is no requirement to deliver a ruling in that time frame.
Training camp begins in late July with the regular season starting in early September. So even if Gordon were granted re-entry into the league, he wouldn’t be available for the start of camp, and he would be in jeopardy of missing the beginning of the season.
Gordon has been banished from the NFL since Feb. 3, 2015, because of recurring violations of its substance-abuse policy.
He filed an application for reinstatement on or around Jan. 20, but the league denied the petition on the heels of Fox Sports reporting Monday the 2013 All-Pro selection failed an NFL-administered drug test in early March.
Fox reported Gordon’s sample collected last month tested positive for marijuana and a diluting substance.
An unnamed source told Fox the “A” and “B” samples tested positive for marijuana and a diluting agent, and although the level of marijuana was below the 35 nanograms per milliliter required for a positive test, the diluted sample is considered a positive test.
Gordon, who turns 25 Wednesday, might never be allowed back in the league, though the NFL seems to be offering some leniency by permitting him to re-apply for reinstatement later this year.
The substance-abuse policy stipulates players in stage three of the substance-abuse program face banishment of at least a year with another failed test.
Gordon had to reach stage three to be banished in the first place, and he’ll return to stage three if the league lets him back in.
So it seems odd that he could fail a test during banishment and still be granted an opportunity to re-apply within a year. The league, though, has discretion as to how it chooses to handle cases such as Gordon’s.
Meanwhile, Gordon’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, and the NFLPA are seeking an investigation into how confidential information about the player’s drug test was leaked, ProFootballTalk.com reported.
The website also reported Gordon isn’t sharing an apartment with notorious partygoer, former teammate and troubled free-agent quarterback Johnny Manziel in Los Angeles despite ESPN reporting on Monday that they’re roommates.
Either way, Gordon and Manziel have been hanging out together this offseason, as evidenced by Manziel documenting at least some of their rendezvous on social media.
All of this will be a moot point if Gordon can’t satisfy Goodell by staying clean, and his history suggests that’s a long shot. The NFL has suspended him three times, and he has missed 27 of the Browns’ past 32 games, including the entire 2015 season. He has been testing positive for marijuana since college.
Goodell said in February during Super Bowl festivities he wants to be assured that Gordon wouldn’t repeat his previous pattern of behavior if he were reinstated. The commissioner obviously has yet to be convinced.
“When these things happen, it’s about trying to avoid them in the future,” Goodell said Feb. 5. “Our No. 1 issue here is to prevent these things from happening. I’m hopeful that Josh understands that he’s going to have to conduct himself differently going forward to be a member of the NFL and to be representing the Cleveland Browns, or any team in the NFL.”
Speaking of the Browns, do they even want Gordon and all of the headaches he causes?
“I think it’s premature for me to talk about that because he hasn’t been reinstated,” Browns coach Hue Jackson said last week when asked if he would want Gordon back.
Gordon’s failed attempt to be reinstated would certainly qualify as a turnoff for the franchise, which didn’t comment on Tuesday’s development. Nothing is stopping the Browns from cutting Gordon, but a roster move is not imminent.
In February at the NFL Scouting Combine, Browns head of football operations Sashi Brown was adamant about the team’s willingness to welcome Gordon back if he were reinstated. But last month at the owners meetings, Brown didn’t sound nearly as optimistic about the possibility.
At one point, Brown even let reporters know he was tired of answering questions about Gordon.
“I would just say probably enough Josh chatter,” Brown said. “I know he’s intriguing, but really for us, we’re focus on the guys that are on our roster. And if Josh comes back, great, and if he doesn’t, we’re ready.”
Jackson also said the Browns were preparing to move on without Gordon.
“I always learned something a long time ago — you never worry about something you never had,” said Jackson, who was hired in January. “I’ve never had any contact with him, so I’m going to plan on what’s in our building now and go from there.”
Good idea because Gordon won’t return anytime soon, if ever.
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Browns blog at www.ohio.com/browns. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NateUlrichABJ and on Facebook www.facebook.com/abj.sports.