Josh Gordon and Tyrann Mathieu Show Risk/Reward Of NFL Draft

Tyrann Mathieu and Josh Gordon have so much in common, and teach an important lesson about the NFL draft.

If ever fans and enthusiasts wanted a perfect example of just how much of a gambling enterprise the draft is, they need not look any further than two of the most prominent names going around the news reels at present.  The first is the former Cleveland Browns wide receiver and current Arizona Cardinals safety.

Here are perhaps two of the most gifted athletes who have played professional football over the past three to four years.  Mathieu a rising star in the Cardinals secondary and Gordon a tantalizing pass target who led the league in receiving in 2013.  They are so alike in how they can take over games.  The fundamental difference between them paints a clear picture of the risk teams accept when selecting such players in the draft.

Mathieu came into the league with several questions surrounding his dismissal from LSU, later believed to be the result of repeated drug test failures.  He entered rehab, re-enrolled but was arrested for possession shortly after.  Still, Arizona took a big gamble by selecting him in the third round of the 2013 draft.  Since then he has become one of the best safeties in the game and a model citizen in Arizona.

Gordon?  He was a promising receiver at Baylor who also wrecked his chances there with multiple drug violations.  Unable to get back on the field, he applied for entry into the 2012 supplemental draft where he was selected in the second round by Cleveland.  His first two seasons were excellent, none more so than the second when he posted 1,646 yards and nine touchdowns.  This despite the fact he was suspended two games for violating league substance abuse policy.  A year later he missed 10 games for a second violation and then finally the NFL banned him for a full season due to a third offense, this time for alcohol abuse.

Now some are wondering if he’ll ever get back in after failing another test while applying for reinstatement.  This reality encapsulates the unknown factor that teams fear so much with such players.  The talent is impossible to ignore but for each player who can gain the level of maturity needed to reach their potential (like Mathieu), there is another who wastes away his incredible gifts because he doesn’t have the will power to control his own impulses (like Gordon).

The franchise impact of such hits and misses can be gargantuan.  Mathieu has helped Arizona to back-to-back playoff appearances.  Cleveland is picking second in the upcoming draft.  Not all comparisons are on such a scale, but it further proves that teams must be willing to live with consequences if they’re wrong.