Browns open to suspended Gordon returning to team

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — If Josh Gordon is reinstated by the NFL, the Cleveland Browns appear ready to have the wide receiver return to the team.

Sashi Brown, the Browns' executive vice president of football operations, said today at the NFL combine that a meeting involving himself, new coach Hue Jackson and Gordon would help determine Gordon's future in Cleveland.

Gordon was suspended for the 2015 season for violating the NFL's substance-abuse policy. He applied for reinstatement last month and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will rule on that application.

According to league policy, for Gordon to be reinstated he will have to demonstrate sustained abstinence during his suspension.

"Everything that we see and hear, and talking to his representation, and those who have been in communication with him, is that he's eager to get back and contribute," Brown said. "And so I think if he's done all the things to put himself in that position and clean up some of the mistakes of the past, then certainly we would welcome him back."

Gordon also was barred for 10 games in 2014 under the same policy, then the Browns suspended him for the final game of that season. In 2013, he was suspended for the first two games.

When he has been on the field, though, he's been productive. In 2013, Gordon set a team record with 1,646 yards receiving.