Patriots acquire wide receiver Josh Gordon in deal with Browns

In a move to add a depth threat to the New England attack, the Patriots announced that they have acquired talented wide receiver Josh Gordon in a trade with the Cleveland Browns.  Other outlets have reported that the Patriots gave up a 2019 fifth round pick in the deal, but could receive back a seventh rounder in 2019 if Gordon is not active for a specified number of games.

In addition, the Patriots have released WR Corey Coleman.

Gordon, 27, is a potentially elite talent, but he has struggled with substance abuse.  As such, he has spent more time serving suspensions for league rules violations lately than he has been playing on Sundays.

Still, Gordon's skills are hard to ignore.  More importantly, the Patriots have a need for a deep threat to take the pressure off star tight end Rob Gronkowski, especially after they dealt speedy Brandin Cooks to the Rams in the offseason.

Throw in the team's overall instability at the position, and Coach Bill Belichick's history of molding troubled players into productive athletes who buy in to the "Patriot Way," and it becomes clear why New England's brass thought the move was worth the risk.

Gordon originally joined Cleveland as a second-round draft pick in the 2012 supplemental draft. The 6-foot-3, 225-pounder has played in 41 NFL games with 38 starts, and totaled 180 receptions for 3,106 yards and 16 touchdowns.

Gordon earned Pro Bowl honors in 2013 and was named first-team All-Pro after finishing with 87 receptions and an NFL-leading 1,646 yards with nine touchdowns. His receiving yards in 2013 remain the 13th highest single-season total in NFL history. In addition that season, he became the first NFL player to ever record back-to-back games with 200 receiving yards.

Coleman, 24, was signed by New England on September 11, 2018. The 5-foot-11, 185-pounder entered the NFL as a first-round draft pick (15th overall) by Cleveland out of Baylor in 2016. Coleman has played in 19 NFL games with 18 starts and has 56 receptions for 718 yards and five touchdowns.

By Staff of TheDailySportsHerald.com and news services