The Cleveland Browns have been fielding trade offers for wide receiver Josh Gordonsince the endof last month.
Have the rampant trade rumors affected Gordon's play?
Upon being held to 21 yards on two catches, the second-year wide receiver was accused of seeming "disengaged" in Sunday's 31-13 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
After checking Game Rewind, we confidently can assert that Gordon's disappointing output stemmed from a perfect storm of Brandon Weeden's errant passes, sticky coverage from Sam Shields and Davon House, a slippery playing surface and the wide receiver's failure to high-point a 50/50 jump ball in traffic.
Gordon insists the trade speculation has not carried over to the field on game days.
"It's been weeks now I've been hearing about it," Gordon said, via The Plain Dealer. "If it's going to happen, it's going to happen. That's just how I'm looking at it."
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Monday that at least three teams have contacted the Browns about a Gordon trade. Two of those teams have standing offers of a high draft pick and a player.
Despite reports to the contrary, coach Rob Chudzinski and CEO Joe Banner have maintained that they are not shopping Gordon and have no plans to trade him.
It doesn't hurt to listen, though. If the ante is raised to a first-round pick, Gordon's suspension risk and characterconcerns might trump his undeniable natural athletic ability in the Browns' eyes.
The latest Around The League Podcast recapped all of Sunday's Week 7 games.
