Belichick Refuses to Talk About Josh Gordon Trade
Joe Calabro, GoLocalProv Sports Team
Belichick Refuses to Talk About Josh Gordon Trade
“If and when it happens, I'm happy to talk about it. It's not completed. So, I don't understand how we don't understand that. When it's completed, it's completed. If it's not completed, it's not completed. And right now, it's not completed. So, next question,” said Belichick when asked about the trade during his press conference on Wednesday.
The trade happened on Monday afternoon and the Patriots issued a press release on it about an hour later.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe trade hit the NFL’s transaction wire on Tuesday.
“There are terms that have to be met before the trade is finalized, and when those are completed, then we'll have a completed trade. And, until they're completed, then I'm not going to get into it,” said Belichick.
When pressed, he added, “I’m not saying it's not going to happen, I'm just saying it's not completed. It's a process, and when we're through with the process, then great. We're in another situation. Right now, we're not through the process.”
Gordon was listed on the Patriots injury report as limited in practice on Wednesday with a hamstring injury.
Belichick was asked to talk “generally about Gordon as player,” but again, he sidestepped the question.
“I’m not going to talk about players that are not actually, I would say, on our roster totally. So, when that happens, it happens, if it happens.”
He is not scheduled to speak to the media again until Friday.
Gronkowski Acknowledges Gordon
“I know that he's a good player, but I can't really get into details. I've never really practiced with him like that before seeing him in person play. But, what I've seen before, he's a great player and just definitely glad to have him here,” said Gronkowski during his press conference on Wednesday.
When asked what Gordon is going to have to do to fit in, Gronkowski said, “Work hard. Do your job. That explains it all.”
Gordon’s Troubles
As GoLocalProv reported at the time of the trade, Gordon has been suspended by the NFL for the majority of the past four seasons due to multiple drug violations.
He was suspended by commissioner Roger Goodell for the entire 2015 and 2016 seasons, and sat out the first 11 games of the 2017 season before coming back to Cleveland for the final five games.
He then missed the first three weeks of this past summer’s training camp to undergo counseling and treatment.
After playing 69 snaps in Cleveland’s week one game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he reported to the team’s facility on Saturday complaining of a hamstring injury.
The Browns said they were going to release him.
5 Reasons Why This Will Be the Patriots Last Trip to the Super Bowl for a Long While
1.
Charlie and Romeo Factor —The last time the offensive and defensive coordinators left the same year after a Super Bowl — the 2004 Super Bowl — it took the Patriots three more years to get back to the Super Bowl. The big difference now is Tom Brady is 40 years old.
2.
Gisele Caroline Bündchen — According to press reports, Tom Brady's wife Gisele Bündchen tried to convince her husband to retire from football during this past offseason. After watching Gronk’s concussion in the AFC Championship and then Brandin Cook’s head injury in the Super Bowl, the pressure on Brady will only increase.
According to Sports Illustrated, Bündchen did it by trying to get Brady’s college teammate and friend Jay Feely to help her during a vacation this past spring.
Feely, a retired NFL kicker, told Sports Illustrated, “She was trying to get me to convince Tom to stop playing. She was dead serious.”
Feely says that he told Brady to "play as long as you can."
This news comes after Bündchen said in a May interview with CBS that Brady had suffered unreported concussions.
3.
Dante Scarnecchia — The Patriots offensive line coach will be 70 years old on February 14. He retired once and was lured back by Bill Belichick. The two-years he was away, the Patriots offensive line was a mess and Brady took a beating. If he goes, Brady’s thought process on retiring may be impacted.
4.
Emily Kelly — A New York Times opinion piece this past week titled, “I’m the Wife of a Former N.F.L. Player. Football Destroyed His Mind. He chose the sport, but he did not choose brain damage,” is a big impact story.
The piece was written by Emily Kelly. She wrote, “My husband, Rob Kelly, is a retired N.F.L. player. After five seasons as a safety beginning in the late 1990s, four with the New Orleans Saints and one with the New England Patriots, he sustained an injury to a nerve between his neck and shoulder during training camp that ended his career. By the time he retired in 2002 at 28, he had been playing tackle football for about two decades. Rob had no idea, however, that all those years of playing would have such serious consequences.
Kelly’s continued, “He went from being a devoted and loving father and husband to someone who felt like a ghost in our home. For a couple of months one winter he was so depressed and detached, he couldn’t muster up the energy to speak. My questions went unanswered until I simply stopped asking them. The silence was unnerving.”
5.
Ever More Fragile Relationship Between Brady and Media — Call it the “WEEI pissant factor.” Despite Brady appearing on WEEI for years via a paid agreement, a WEEI host decided to call Tom Brady’s daughter an unflattering name. Brady was less than pleased.
For Brady, this year’s media relationship transformed from a decade-and-a-half love affair to a strained one.
BONUS
Gronk's Future
Rob Gronkowski may retire. "I don't know how you heard that, but I mean I'm definitely going to look at my future, for sure," Gronkowski said. "I'm going to sit down in the next couple of weeks and see where I'm at."
It is harder to sleep soundly when you don't have your security blanket.
