Josh Gordon

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David
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Lions4ever wrote:I agree with him 100%. This is a silly and inconsequential breach that warrants no more than a $100 fine and fuggedaboudit.
NFL is going to have to seriously review its marijuana policy now that it's legal in two states, both of which have NFL teams. I don't touch the stuff myself, but it seems a little draconian to suspend a guy for an entire season, especially when thousands of people consume it for medicinal reasons. Then a veritable free ride for someone who admitted to beating a woman? The league needs to get its priorities straight. :dizzy:



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DanoT wrote:Since marijuana is not a performance enhancing drug, I don't think it is on the CFL's banned substance list. Kinda makes the not being able to play in the CFL for Gordon very ironic.
Agreed, but it's not the CFL's stance (whatever it is with regard to pot) that's preventing Josh Gordon playing up here, but, rather the Browns' unwillingness to let him. He's still under contract to them and has not been cut. The Browns' stance seems reasonable to me; Gordon is a valuable commodity, and the team is probably concerned about his being injured and unable to return to action after the suspension is served.

I think there are two issues here. The first is whether the penalty for pot use is proportionate, given the far-more-serious actions (like domestic violence) that have drawn comparatively lax punishment. As was pointed out in the piece above by Eric Macramalla, however, this comparison does not have legal implications, since one infraction is covered by the CBA and the other is at the discretion of the NFL. To many, though, it certainly has moral implications. I agree that having a one-year suspension dropped on Josh Gordon for marginal pot use at the same time that Ray Rice is suspended for only 2 games for cold-cocking his then-fiancé, now-wife seems disproportionate in the extreme.

The second, and less important, issue is the point I was trying to make in my previous post, namely that it is hypocritical for a player who's busted for pot to characterize a league official as lacking discretion and judgment when it was that player's lack of discretion and judgment in the first place that led to the suspension. The league has a rule in place (whether it's a good rule or not), and players are exercising terrible judgment by breaking it. This can hardly be seen as justifiable civil disobedience. They're letting down their team, the fans, and ultimately themselves by disregarding a clearly-stated rule--whether it's a good rule or not. It was interesting last season when Seahawks Brandon Browner and Walter Thurmond were suspended (the former for PED use, the latter for "substance abuse" meaning something other than PEDs), that the sentiment among at least some of their teammates was that these were selfish actions that hurt the team--and, by extension, showed a lack of judgment.
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cromartie
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Lions4ever wrote:
cromartie wrote:If you think the Browns will release Gordon so he can play in the CFL, then get nothing for him when his suspension ends, you're kidding yourself.
Is the suspension with or without pay? If it's with, then no problem. If it's without, as I assume it would be, I'd think he could legally challenge this as it prevents him from being able to earn a living at his chosen profession. Is there another line of work where this could happen? It's not like he's a lawyer/accountant/banker/broker who stole/embezzled trust funds or dentist/doctor who committed malpractice, etc. The infraction had zilch to do with the profession itself. Not sure, but if it were me and I were rich, I might be lawyering up and taking a run at it.
The rules to which he agreed to where collectively bargained by the union of which he is a member. So that'll be all for that line of thinking.

He's a screw up.

The NFL's stance on marijuana is absurd.

But rules are rules, and he's out for the year.
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Lions4ever
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cromartie wrote:
Lions4ever wrote:
cromartie wrote:If you think the Browns will release Gordon so he can play in the CFL, then get nothing for him when his suspension ends, you're kidding yourself.
Is the suspension with or without pay? If it's with, then no problem. If it's without, as I assume it would be, I'd think he could legally challenge this as it prevents him from being able to earn a living at his chosen profession. Is there another line of work where this could happen? It's not like he's a lawyer/accountant/banker/broker who stole/embezzled trust funds or dentist/doctor who committed malpractice, etc. The infraction had zilch to do with the profession itself. Not sure, but if it were me and I were rich, I might be lawyering up and taking a run at it.
The rules to which he agreed to where collectively bargained by the union of which he is a member. So that'll be all for that line of thinking.

He's a screw up.

The NFL's stance on marijuana is absurd.

But rules are rules, and he's out for the year.
I agree. I was just kinda pondering/playing a bit of devil's advocate really.
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