Report: NFLPA, Gordon file grievance vs. Browns over one-game ban
The NFL Players Association filed a noninjury grievance against the Cleveland Browns this week regarding the one-game suspension the team levied against wide receiver Josh Gordon this past season, reports ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter.
Gordon was suspended for the 2014 season finale against the Baltimore Ravens for missing a team walk-through. According to the report, the NFLPA plans to argue that Gordon skipping a special-teams meeting should not have resulted in a suspension.
The Plain Dealer in Cleveland reports that in the grievance, Gordon argues that he was never informed that he was late for five or six other team functions like the team says he was, and was never disciplined for being late until the suspension.
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If the arbitrator rules in the Browns' favor, Gordon could miss out on an accrued year. Gordon was suspended for 10 games last season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy, but was active for five games.
League rules stipulate that a player must be active for six games to have an accrued season count towards free agency. Gordon is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2016 season.
Gordon, 23, was suspended without pay for the entire 2015 season last month for again violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy when he tested positive for alcohol.
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