Career sidekick Nate Burleson has played alongside some otherworldly receivers.
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He started his career on the same field as Randy Moss in Minnesota, and has spent the past four seasons in Detroit watching Calvin Johnson transform into Megatron.
Burleson now joins the Cleveland Browns and last season's NFL-leading receiver Josh Gordon. Burleson wouldn't make comparisons, but nonetheless passed along some high praise of Gordon.
"I can tell you this, when talking about (Gordon) with Calvin, Calvin basically said, 'that young boy is good,'" Burleson said Monday, per The Plain Dealer. "And for a guy like Calvin, who has very little words, for him to kind of give that credit to a young guy, it basically tells everybody in the world to watch out, the next big thing's here."
We discussed on the latest "Around The League Podcast" that there is a chance that Burleson might not make the final roster. If he does make it through cuts, he will play the role the Browns lacked last season: mentor to an ascending receiving talent.
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Burleson is a true locker room leader. For a time in Detroit, he helped troubled receiver Titus Young -- it was only after one of Burleson's injuries forced him away from the team every day that Young's troubles with the coaching staff began.
"I'm going to lead by example and then establish those relationships," Burleson said of his approach in Cleveland. "If I can take a guy out to dinner, hang out outside of the locker room, then I'm definitely going to do that 'cause that's one of the more important times when the lessons are learned, when you've got the jerseys off and you kind of unveil yourself and it's not all football."
If he sticks with the team, Burleson's contributions on the field could be minimal, but he still can play a familiar role: Nate the Mentor.
In the latest edition of the "Around The League Podcast," the guys begin the offseason Roster Reset series with the AFC West and dive into the ATL mailbag.