The Cleveland Browns are once again faced with the question of what to do with Josh Gordon, but the fact is they can replace his talent.
Josh Gordon has applied for reinstatement to the NFL, again. It's unclear if Gordon just changed the date on the previous paperwork he sent in or not. Either way, if and when Gordon is reinstated, the Cleveland Browns are forced to make a decision with Gordon, again. Do they see if he can make his 17th chance payoff or wash their hands of him entirely as they suggested last year?
Executive Vice President Sashi Brown opened the door to this at the NFL owner's meetings when he said the following as reported by Mary Kay Cabot for Cleveland.com:
"Josh, assuming that he'd play at the level we started to see glimpses of last preseason and certainly when he was in the league before, would be a talent I think no team in the NFL would turn down if he got back in," said Brown. "Our decision with Josh is just understanding where he is in his process and being able to add him, but we're not in a position at the wide receiver to turn down a guy like Josh if we feel like he's settled himself.
"Now that's a separate question, but Josh is going to have an opportunity to reapply to the NFL, and at that time, we'll make a decision when we know what's going on."
Whether this is an indication of how the team really feels or simply a way to try to induce other teams to make an offer for Gordon is unclear. What is clear is that once again, Gordon is a discussion when he hasn't done anything for the Browns in the past three seasons.
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The most common argument for keeping Gordon is that you can't just find that kind of talent, so the Browns simply can't give up on Gordon. It's worth the risk to figure out if he can be reliable. This is rooted in the fear that if the Browns ship Gordon out of town, he could be great for another team and the Browns will have gone through all of this nonsense with him and not benefited from the payoff.
And even after all of suspensions and disappointment, there are plenty willing to look past all of it for the chance he can make it work. A low risk, high reward move. Some have even suggested it's a lottery ticket. So, that would suggest that if I can find Gordon type talent in the draft, a low risk high reward move, that would assuage fears and enable the Browns to move on.
I accept.
So, let's look at Gordon as a reference point
Josh Gordon
Height: 6-3.125
Weight: 224 lbs
40 Yard Dash: 4.52s
Broad Jump: 10'2″
Vertical: 35.5″
3-Cone: DNP
Shuttle: DNP
Bench: 13 reps
Impressive explosion, but obviously there's no information on his agility. That's a pretty good athletic profile, but let's see if we can't do better with this year's draft class.
Robert Davis, Georgia State
Height: 6-2.75
Weight: 219 lbs
40 Yard Dash: 4.44s
Broad Jump: 11'3″
Vertical: 41″
3-Cone: 6.82s
Shuttle: 4.28s
Bench: 19 reps
Davis is an alien. His athletic profile is genuinely outstanding and completely outshines Gordon's across the board. Davis also has four years of collegiate experience and had more production this past season than Gordon had in his entire collegiate career, because (stop me if you've heard this before) Gordon couldn't stay on the field due to failed drug tests.
In 12 games this past season, Davis caught 67 passes for 968 yards and five touchdowns. That constituted 32.7 percent of the Panthers receiving yards 29.4 percent of their receiving touchdowns.
This season, he had the opportunity to showcase his ability against Wisconsin. Davis caught eight passes for 93 yards and a touchdown in a 23-17 loss to the Badgers.
Sep 17, 2016; Madison, WI, USA; Georgia State Panthers wide receiver Robert Davis (19) catches a pass for a touchdown during the third quarter against the Wisconsin Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium. Wisconsin won 23-17. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
There is an issue with Davis that needs to be addressed. For his incredible athleticism and ability, he's still learning how to be a good receiver and this is obvious when it comes to how he attacks the football. Too often, Davis doesn't position himself well and makes catches far more difficult than they need to be.
This is similar to an issue that Greg Little had when he was in the NFL. He didn't do a good job of separating himself from defenders and every reception was an adventure. Davis has a lot of drops the same way Little did.
Nevertheless, with his athleticism, if he can be coached to be a better route runner and understand how to position his body more effectively in relation to defensive backs, the ceiling is the roof in terms of his potential. He can play on the outside or in the slot, basically able to do most anything.
Krishawn Hogan, Marian University
Height: 6-2.625
Weight: 222 lbs
40 Yard Dash: 4.56s
Broad Jump: 10'3″
Vertical: 36.5″
3-Cone: 6.74a
Shuttle: 4.21s
Bench: 13 reps
His athletic profile in terms of explosion is largely identical to Gordon's. The difference is that Hogan's agility is a known quantity and incredibly impressive. Hogan caught 80 passes for 1,435 yards and 15 touchdowns in 12 games this past season. That was 39.1 percent of Marian's receiving yards and 38.4 percent of their receiving touchdowns.
Hogan was a late bloomer and didn't really do much as a player at Warren Central High School in Ohio before going to Walsh University. After a freshman season where he caught 32 passes for 393 yards, he transferred to Marian University, an NAIA school.
I'm not going to lie. I had to look up where Marian University is (It's in Indianapolis for those interested). No one is going to be impressed by the schedule they play either. That doesn't change the fact that he has NFL caliber athletic ability and talent and had three years of terrific production.
Both Hogan and Davis were invited to and participated in this year's scouting combine, so the NFL is certainly aware of them. It's still likely that one or both could be sitting there on the third day of the NFL Draft and could be selected to replace Gordon with about as likely a chance to succeed, given Gordon's litany of issues.
The Browns already have Gordon, so why should they try to replace him with a prospect in the draft?
Since this front office has been in place, they've put a significant emphasis on character and reliability. Not only have they avoided players with arrests in the draft and most of free agency, they've actively gotten rid of players they've inherited with them.
The notable example is the recent addition of Kenny Britt. Britt's track record has nine run-ins with the law. The case the Browns are making and hoping works out is that once Britt got out of Tennessee, he has cleaned up his act. If he can't stay out of trouble in Cleveland, the Browns deserve criticism over the move.
If the goal is to institute and maintain a culture with its players, they may be better off going with a tremendous athlete from a smaller school that is focused on being great at football rather than crossing their fingers, gritting their teeth and hoping once again that Gordon doesn't get himself kicked out of the league.
Despite the notable handicap of still being in college, Davis and Hogan have contributed the same amount to the Browns as Gordon has the past two seasons. And at some point, the team just has to move on focus entirely on who they can rely on to produce on Sundays. The fact that there are options out there with the same kind of talent make it easier for the Browns to move on from Gordon.
The bottom line is the Cleveland Browns can add players with the same kind of incredible upside Gordon has. The false choice that too many insist on making with Gordon is calling him an automatic if he's stay on the field. That's exactly why he's not automatic and why players like Davis and Hogan arguably have the same chance to succeed as Gordon does.
The important and refreshing difference is that Davis and Hogan would succeed or fail on the field when Gordon fails to even get there. Maybe Josh Gordon has finally figured it out, but the Browns do not need to operate from a place of fear when it comes to how to address the situation.
