After a smooth start to his Patriots’ tenure, it appeared that star receiver Josh Gordon has hit a bit of a rough patch. New England was supposed to discipline Gordon for tardiness by sitting him for a few series in their Monday night game against the Buffalo Bills, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. However, they didn’t and Gordon was on the field for the team’s opening snap.
The Patriots were reportedly benching Josh Gordon for 1 quarter against the Bills, but they didn’t
Josh Gordon hit his first bit of trouble with the New England Patriots.
Quinn Harris-USA TODAY Sports
According to The Athletic’s Jeff Howe, Gordon was late when the team was trying to depart for Buffalo.
Gordon has been a growing contributor for the Patriots over the past few weeks. He is third on the Patriots in targets over the last three weeks, but leads the Patriots in receiving yards over that timespan.
Gordon is coming off his best game with the Patriots. Last week against the Bears, Gordon caught four passes for 100 yards. That included a long run after the catch to put New England in scoring range.
After the game, Bill Belichick and Josh Gordon both gave non-answers in regard to the reports of his discipline. The Patriot Way.
Tardiness was part of the reason why the Browns traded Gordon to the Patriots after Week 2 — Cleveland was set on releasing him before it received a fifth-round pick from New England. The Patriots, especially head coach Bill Belichick, typically hasn’t been patient with players who slip up with team rules. In 2014, the Patriots sent running back Jonas Gray from practice for oversleeping, right after he set the franchise record for rushing touchdowns in a game.
For Gordon’s sake, hopefully this is just a blip on the radar and not a sign of things to come during his time in New England. Consistency, in every sense of the word, has been the biggest issue with Gordon throughout his career. He has missed 56 of 101 possible games in his career due to drug suspensions.
Tom Brady has been vocal about Josh Gordon being a positive contributor to the Patriots so far, which seemed like a great sign up to this point.
But if the Patriots can’t trust him to hold up his end of bargain, his stay in New England will be short-lived.
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