The Facts: In his conditional reinstatement to the NFL, Gordon was given clearance to practice last week with the Browns, and by all accounts, he looked great doing it. The last checkpoint is this week, when, "at the team's discretion," Gordon would either return to active status or remain on the Reserve/Commissioner Exempt List for another week. A source informed of the team's thinking told NFL Network's Ian Rapoport the Browns will, in fact, activate Gordon.
Diehards Line:
That means finally, for the first time since Dec. 21, 2014, after years of suspension for repeated violations of the NFL's substance abuse policy, Gordon will return to the field next weekend against the Los Angeles Chargers. Expect the team to try to ease him into the flow, considering how long of a layoff it's been. Gordon is curious about how he'll play. He gained 1,646 yards with nine TDs in 2013 while he wasn't sober. Stay tuned. I'll obviously be following this one closely in coming days.