Cris Carter wants you to know he speaks from painful experience when he stresses Josh Gordon "won't change until he finds his own rock bottom."
The Cleveland Browns star and league-leading receiver is expected to be suspended for all of the 2014-15 season after testing positive for marijuana for the second time in less than a year. Gordon also missed several games at the start of last season for a similar offense.
Josh Gordon face 2014-15 suspension
"It's fairly obvious that using substances is more important to him than anything else,'' said Carter, who famously overcame his own drug addiction to have an NFL Hall of fame career. "If the building is on fire and the person decides to stay in there, I don't run in there and get him out. If you see them breaking the glass, if you see them struggling and trying to get out -- that's my analogy of how I help out the guys in the league and the kids that really, really need help.''
The former Ohio State star added veteran players such as himself tirelessly work behind the scenes to help younger players like Gordon find their way. In Gordon, Carter said he sees a lot of himself both on and off the field.
Josh Gordon caught with pot in speeding car
"He's really one of the few receivers that's playing in the game now that with a sustained long and healthy career you can say he's got the potential to wear a gold jacket,'' said Carter. "He's pretty special.''
Still, Carter warned things could get worse for Gordon before they get better.
"My bottom was getting cut, and I was so upset because even though they cut me, I wasn't using at the time,'' said Carter. "They cut me because they couldn't trust me. At the time, I had only flunked two tests. The next one, I would've been suspended for a year. I was clean for over six months at the time."
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