Not much has been reported or disclosed in the 10 days since ESPN first broke the news that Browns receiver Josh Gordon faces a season-long suspension for his latest violation of the substance-abuse policy.
According to Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Gordon is appealing the discipline.
The timetable for a resolution and precise duration of the potential discipline remain unknown, as does the question of whether Gordon’s past issues have placed him in Stage 2 or Stage 3 of the substance-abuse policy.
It’s likely that he’s in Stage 3, since only a violation in Stage 3 triggers a permanent ban with the ability to apply for reinstatement after a year. Discipline arising from an effort to cheat the testing process could extend for a year or longer, but there’s no reason to think this was anything other than a “normal” violation by Gordon.
Either way, the Browns need to plan for life without Gordon. If he’s ultimately suspended for a full year, he’ll have to stay clean through multiple and consistent unannounced tests, or he’ll never be reinstated.