BEREA: Josh Gordon took a monumental step in his comeback attempt and called his shot.
The Browns activated Gordon from the nonfootball injury list before their 13th practice of training camp Monday, and the former All-Pro wide receiver practiced for the first time since Dec. 26, 2014.
“It’s big,” Gordon said. “I think every day I’m back, it means a lot to me, and I’m glad to be out there with my brothers putting my helmet back on.”
Although Gordon missed the first 12 practices of camp with a quadriceps injury and has been suspended for the better part of the past two seasons because of recurring violations of the NFL’s substance-abuse policy, he’s confident he still has what it takes to produce like he did when he led the NFL with 1,646 receiving yards in 2013.
“I’m definitely the same guy. I’m confident in my abilities. I know what I can do,” said Gordon, who was reinstated by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on July 25 after being banished from the league for the entire 2015 season. “Given the opportunity and the right timing, right position and relying on the rest of the team as much as they rely on me, it’s a great boost of motivation, and I think anything is possible for anybody. But I definitely am aware of what I can do, and I think I can build upon that and do even better.”
Everyone wants to know whether Gordon can still dominate the way he did three years ago.
“I’ll be tuned in just like you guys will,” receiver Andrew Hawkins said. “Josh is an incredible talent. He has incredible ability. I don’t know if I’d be able to sit out two years and come back at a high level. I’m not going to count that out of Josh because I don’t think I’m the freakish athlete Josh is.”
Gordon was limited to individual drills in practice, but he said “the quad’s great, the best it’s felt in a long time.”
Coach Hue Jackson said Gordon probably won’t play when the Browns face the Atlanta Falcons in their second preseason game beginning at 8 p.m. Thursday at FirstEnergy Stadium. Still, Jackson was encouraged by Gordon’s return to practice.
“It was great. It was good to watch him move around, catch the ball and be involved with his teammates,” Jackson said. “He’s done a great job, and we’re just working our plan.”
Browns players are thrilled to have him back on the field.
“It’s a long time coming,” Hawkins said. “He’s been incredible this training camp, and I think everyone’s excited to see him back in a Browns uniform and continue his chase to be the best Josh he can be.”
Gordon’s teammates and coaches have insisted he’s done everything asked of him since his return to the Browns. They’re hopeful he can stay on the right path despite being suspended for 27 of the past 32 games. Those numbers will rise to 31 of the 36 games after he serves a four-game suspension to begin the 2016 regular season.
Before the Browns’ 17-11 preseason-opening loss Friday to the Green Bay Packers, Gordon was on the field smiling and laughing as he talked to teammates and owner Jimmy Haslam. He emphasized he appreciates his opportunity more this time around and he’s happier.
“Being around happy people, it kind of just rubs off on you, and I missed it,” Gordon said. “Being back here, I love it, and I try to take full advantage of it.
“This opportunity we have here is like nothing I’ve felt before or seen before, and I really want to be a part of it. ... You feel more enthusiastic about coming to work when guys are ready to commit themselves to win.”
Gordon, 25, said Jackson and head of football operations Sashi Brown have vowed to support him, telling him they need him just as much as he needs them. It also helps Gordon that he has close friends on the team like quarterback Robert Griffin III, his teammate at Baylor University, cornerback Joe Haden and receivers Terrelle Pryor and Corey Coleman, another Baylor product.
“Everybody’s really like family here,” Gordon said. “It’s a different atmosphere than what I was used to here and what it felt like. Guys are really close for some reason, and I think it’s great and I think we could definitely benefit from that.”
Gordon, though, admitted he wasn’t sure how he would be received in the locker room upon his reinstatement.
“They welcomed me back,” he said. “It feels like home, and we’re not looking back. They’re not looking at my past, and I’m not trying to look back toward that and we’re just ready to move forward and I’m grateful to them.”
Having Griffin by his side — they’re neighbors in the locker room — doesn’t hurt. Gordon thinks they’ll be friends for the rest of their lives. It all started when they became a dynamic duo at Baylor.
“It was fun, a lot of fun,” Griffin said. “We had some great games, some great times together, and we’re looking forward to really building that here in Cleveland.
“He’s excited to be back, and he’s had that injury that’s slowed him down a little bit. But he’s constantly getting extra work, whether it’s boxing, running, catching the ball. So I know he’ll be ready when he steps out there. He knows what he has to do to get ready.”
Losing weight is on the to-do list, as Jackson and Gordon’s college coach, Art Briles, have said in recent weeks.
Gordon has already lost some weight since he rejoined the team late last month, and he expects to shed more pounds simply by practicing on a regular basis again.
“Nobody really gave me a number,” said Gordon, who’s listed as 6-foot-3 and 225 pounds but didn’t disclose his real weight. “I kind of set my own goal in my head of what I used to play at. But I feel just as strong, just as fast as I felt before, if not stronger, if not faster. So we’ll see how my production is, and we’ll go from there once they evaluate and get some stuff on film. I’ll be able to tell how I feel.”
If Gordon’s expectations are realistic, he’ll eventually feel like an All Pro again.
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Browns blog at www.ohio.com/browns. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NateUlrichABJ and on Facebook www.facebook.com/abj.sports.