Gordon Reinstated

In an offseason of sweeping changes and a free agent exodus, the Cleveland Browns received a bit of good news on Monday.

Commissioner Roger Goodell has reinstated former Browns Pro Bowl receiver Josh Gordon.  Although Gordon is on somewhat of a probationary period, he will be allowed to participate in training camp before facing a four-game suspension to begin the season.

“As we discussed at our [July 19] meeting, as Commissioner, I want nothing more than to see you turn your circumstances around and succeed,” Goodell wrote to Gordon. “Countless others including your agent, teammates and coaches, Mr. Haslam and the leadership of the organization, the Program professionals and Jim Brown also have pledged to provide you with every resource at their disposal. But as you acknowledged, ultimately, your future is your responsibility. I have every belief that you can make the right choices, but it will be up to you to do so.”

“With the league’s decision to afford Josh the opportunity to resume his career, he will be with us for the start of training camp,” Browns EVP of Football Operations Sashi Brown said in a statement. “At that time, we will discuss directly with Josh the direction of our team, our expectations of our players and a plan to support him on and off the field.”

For perhaps the first time in league history, Gordon will be allowed to be with his team during the suspension.

“The last few times Josh was suspended, he couldn’t be with the team, and that was counterproductive,” Gordon’s agent Drew Rosenhaus said in a statement. “This is a great change, the fact that he can stay with the team during the suspension.”

The Browns went from having one of the worst set of pass catching targets in the NFL without Gordon to what appears to be a somewhat formidable group for whomever wins the starting quarterback job.  Joining Gordon will be rookie Corey Coleman, Andre Hawkins, tight end Gary Barnidge and Duke Johnson in the backfield.

Although this is obviously important to Gordon, it will give either Robert Griffin, III or Josh McCown a legitimate shot to succeed.  Without Gordon, either quarterback would have had a difficult time manufacturing any sort of offense and they would have seen their careers continue to spiral downward.

Aldon Smith Is Probably Dumb

Oakland Raiders defensive end/linebacker Aldon Smith is currently facing a one-year suspension.

When Roger Goodell is the commissioner you really want to watch your proverbial “P’s” and “Q’s”.  Especially if you plan on smoking an illegal substance and then video taping it.

We don’t know for sure that Smith was featured in the video, but it certainly sounds like him.  On top of that, the person who may or may not be Smith said just about the dumbest thing possible.

“They don’t know it’s me. It’s not like I put ‘Aldon Smith.'”

Smith refutes the theory that he’s the man in the video.

https://twitter.com/AldonSmith/status/757619520907337728?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Smith is a talented pass rusher but he can’t seem to stay out of his own way. At this point it’s unclear whether he will be able to regain his standing as an active player or whether he’ll go the way of Justin Blackmon and Daryl Washington.

Junior Galette Out For The Season, Again

Last season, the Washington Redskins scooped up pass rusher Junior Galette after he was released by the New Orleans Saints.

Shortly after, Galette tore his Achilles and missed the entire 2015 season.

In an unfortunate turn of events for Galette, it happened again, this time working out.

Galette tweeted that he had been in the best shape of his life “and this happens to me now.”

This is a small victory for Karma, as Galette lost his job with the Saints due in large part stemming from a video of him whipping a woman with a belt,

The interesting part in all of this is that Galette never had to answer for his transgression.  While players such as Ray Rice and Greg Hardy were skewered for their domestic violence issues, Galette has yet to face the media.

With a pair of torn Achilles and his history, it’s more likely than not that Galette will never play another NFL snap.  As for Washington, they will try to get by with Ryan Kerrigan, Trent Murphy and Preston Smith.