XFL: Seattle Sea Dragons sign former NFL All Pro WR Josh Gordon
In November of 2022 the XFL held the draft for their newly rebooted league after Coronavirus halted the first comeback in 2020. After the conclusion of the draft some ex-NFL players found their way onto a XFL roster. Names such as A.J. McCarron, Martavis Bryant and former NFL All-Pro Vic Beasley topped the charts.
On January 1, the XFL held a supplemental draft to fill the remaining spots on the rosters. It was surprising enough after seeing Gordon didn’t get selected in the first portion of XFL Draft, what is even more surprising is that in the supplemental draft Gordon was not selected until the 6th round by the Seattle Sea Dragons. Meaning that with both drafts included there were 57 receivers taken by XFL teams before the former NFL All-Pro would find himself on a roster.
The reason this is so surprising is that the 57 wide receivers that were taken before him definitely do not have a nearly as impressive career as Gordon himself. While Gordon has not been in the limelight as of late, he was one of the more dominant NFL wideouts of the 2010s.
Most notably during his time with the Cleveland Browns, Gordon would develop into one of the most electric playmakers in the league. Gordon was drafted in the 2012 NFL Supplemental Draft out of Baylor University (NCAA Division-I).
In 2013 alone, Gordon would break five Browns receiving franchise records and one NFL record, being the first player to have back-to-back 200+ yard receiving games. Gordon would also lead the league with 1645 yards and had a longest reception of 95 yards which was 2013s longest play.
Gordon’s 2013 performance got him a bid to the NFL Pro Bowl and he was selected for the NFLs All-Pro first team. The following season Gordon was ranked 16th on the yearly NFL Top 100 list.
Being the only bright spot of a lackluster Cleveland Browns team, the future looked promising for the young receiver heading into the 2014 season.
However, during the offseason, Gordon was arrested on July 5th, 2014, for driving while impaired. Over a month later before the start of training camp Gordon received a full year suspension from the NFL, which was reduced, however, in September to 10 games.
After being reinstated in November of 2014, the All-Pro got his chance to see the field again. Gordon played five games to end the season with 24 receptions for 303 yards and no touchdowns. Gordon was also suspended by the Browns for the last game of the season for violation of team rules.
While he did not get the chance to live up to the expectations he set for the 2014 season, the offseason came around once again, and fans were hoping to see Gordon back in full-time action for the 2015 season.
However, due to a number of off field incidents and league violations. Gordon would tally up suspensions that would leave him out of action for the entirety of the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
Finally in 2017, Gordon would earn back the trust of the NFL as they would reinstate him after missing 45 consecutive games. Gordon would make his long-awaited return during a Week 13 matchup against the San Diego Chargers. In this game he would tally up 85 receiving yards in the Browns 19-0 loss.
Gordon would once again play only 5 games in 2017 putting up similar stats to his 2014 campaign with 18 receptions for 335 yards and a TD.
To start off the 2018 season, Gordon seemed to show glimpses of the player he once was as he scored a late game-tying touchdown in a Week 1 tie against AFC North division rival Pittsburgh Steelers.
However, due to lack of trust the Cleveland Browns would part with Gordon the following week. He would be traded that same week for a 5th round draft pick in the 2019 draft and would find himself on a New England Patriot team with Tom Brady as his quarterback.
During his 11 games with the Patriots, Gordon would see a bit of a resurgence in his career after racking up 720 yards and three touchdowns.
During the heat of his success with the Patriots he decided to take a step away from the team. However, after playing 11 games Gordon still received a Super Bowl ring as the Patriots would go on to win the Lombardi Trophy without him.
This season was essentially the last of Gordon’s success in the NFL. Gordon would spend the first six games of the 2019 season in New England before being released and picked up by the Seattle Seahawks.
At the tail end of the 2019 season, Gordon would receive his fifth NFL suspension, this time for the use of Performance Enhancing Drugs. After missing the 2020 season due to suspension, Gordon had a chance at reinstatement for the 2021 season but was suspended indefinitely by the NFL and released by the Seahawks in March of 2021.
Gordon was eventually reinstated to the NFL and spent time with the Kansas City Chiefs and most recently with the Tennessee Titans for two games in the 2022 season.
During his hiatus from the NFL, Gordon would play in the Fan Controlled Football League for the FCF Zappers. Through two games Gordon had seven receptions for 100 yards and three touchdowns.
Now, Gordon finds himself playing football in the city of Seattle once again. After loads of ups and downs, Gordon is still one of the most exciting players to watch. Barring any off the field incidents he should be a name that is high up on Sea Dragons stat sheets week in and week out for the upcoming season.
