Josh Gordon is stepping away from NFL amid possible lifetime ban

New England Patriots receiver Josh Gordon is stepping away from the NFL to focus on his mental health.

We may have seen the last of Josh Gordon on an NFL field.

On Thursday morning, Gordon made an announcement on social media that he was stepping away from his career in football to focus on his mental health. Gordon has had much-publicized struggles with substance abuse dating back to his college days at Baylor, which was one of the reasons he was a supplemental draft pick in 2012.

There are two sides to this story. According to Gordon, he is taking a break for his mental health. However not long after he released his statement it was reported that he had been notified of another failed drug test.

Such a thing would be a violation of his reinstatement conditions and the result is a ban that the NFL is unlikely to consider ever lifting again. There were questions as to whether or not the league would reinstate him after banning him while Gordon was still with the Cleveland Browns. Gordon violated the NFL’s substance abuse policy twice in his first three seasons, which ultimately resulted in him being banished for two years before his reinstatement in 2017.

Beyond Gordon’s issues, this is another indictment of the Patriot Way. This is not the first time a troubled player has been brought into New England only to flame out away from the field. Whether or not the Patriots are able to come back from this is and salvage an already tumultuous season is beyond the point.

Gordon hasn’t officially been suspended by the league yet, but more details are expected to be released before the end of the week.