The Vikings Won't Be Trading For Josh Gordon (And Neither Will Anyone Else)

With the Minnesota Vikings' need for a wide receiver. . .perceived or otherwise. . .a logical target for acquisition during the off-season might have been Cleveland Browns' receiver Josh Gordon. Gordon, who missed ten games last season because of an issue with marijuana.

Gordon put up decent. . .not great. . .numbers after he came back, but wound up being suspended for the Browns' final game due to missing a practice. After flourishing under Norv Turner, it appeared that Gordon might have been someone worth taking a chance on, despite his off-the-field problems.

Not anymore.

Gordon has, once again, failed a league-mandated drug test, and is now on track to be suspended for one full year under the NFL's substance abuse policy. Gordon tested positive for alcohol and not any sort of illegal substance. However, according to Pro Football Talk, Gordon is subject to alcohol testing after being cited for DWI this past July.

People can jump up and down about Gordon being suspended for taking a legal substance, I guess. And I'm sure they will. But if I had a multi-million dollar job that I could potentially lose if I got caught drinking alcohol, I'd probably. . .you know. . .not drink alcohol. Or if I had problems with alcohol, I'd get help for my problems. That's just me, though.

ESPN's Adam Schefter is reporting that the suspension is pretty much a "done deal." The suspension also puts his future with the Browns, and in the NFL in general, in serious doubt.

You'd have to think that this changes the Browns' draft strategy, too. And, you know, since they do pick right after the Vikings, it might give Rick Spielman another opportunity to get the Browns to give up some capital to move up a spot. He got the Browns to do just that in 2012 (to move from #4 to #3) and in 2014 (to move from #9 to #8), so it isn't completely out of the realm of possibility.