Gordon hasn’t played in an NFL game since the 2014 season.
Josh Gordon has cleared a major hurdle in a potential NFL comeback.
The Cleveland Browns wide receiver was reinstated on a conditional basis from his indefinite suspension for multiple violations of the league’s substance abuse policy, the team announced Wednesday. Gordon met with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in New York on Wednesday.
Gordon is eligible to practice with the team beginning Nov. 20 and can be placed on the active roster a week later. The Browns also could place him on the commissioner’s exempt list for an additional week at that point.
“As emphasized at today’s meeting, everyone – including Josh’s teammates and coaches, the Browns’ ownership and organization, the Program professionals and all of at the league office – want him to have every opportunity to resume his career and to be successful in the NFL,” Goodell said in a statement. “Whether that happens, however, at the end of the day will depend on Josh. His commitment to sobriety and to reaching his goals in football and beyond will determine his success. It is ultimately up to Josh.”
Browns executive vice president of football operations Sashi Brown did not divulge any immediate details about the team’s plans for Gordon.
“We’ve been informed of the league’s decision to reinstate Josh,” Brown said in a statement. “The personal well-being of all our players is of the utmost importance to us. We respect and commend Josh for taking the steps necessary to have the opportunity to return to the league. Josh will be in our building in the coming days and we look forward to having him back and sitting with him to discuss his future on our team.”
Gordon was suspended in Feb. 2015 for testing positive for alcohol. He was denied reinstatement on multiple occasions, including in May.
Gordon, 26, led the NFL in receiving yards in 2013 with 1,646 in 16 games. But he has played in just five games since then, none of which have come under second-year Browns coach Hue Jackson.
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