Cris Carter would definitely know best. The Hall of Fame wide receiver battled substance abuse issues during his tenure with the Eagles, and has always said that the turning point in his life was the day that Buddy Ryan released him.
Carter believes the Browns should take the same approach with Gordon.
“I feel for the kid,” Carter told ESPN’s Mike & Mike on Monday. “My situation was very, very similar. If I’m the Cleveland Browns — and it’s gut-wrenching for me to say this — I really think that the only thing that’s going to help the kid is if they release him.”
Carter spoke about the support system he had in Philadelphia, but admitted he didn’t get the message until he was cut.
“We’re dealing with addiction. We’re dealing with a disease,” Carter continued. “If Josh had cancer we’d put him in a treatment center. And right now that’s what we need to do for him. But no one wants to do the hard thing. Everyone wants to keep coddling him, the same way they did him in high school, the same thing they did him at Baylor, where he had problems. Eventually it’s going to blow up. Now it’s blowing up in the National Football League, and his career is in jeopardy.”
