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Usually, when a prolific player is released, every Dolphins’ fan on planet earth starts to wonder “what if”.
So, when reports began to surface that the New England Patriots could move on from ‘star’ wide receiver Josh Gordon, the first thing we were left wondering is that very question.
All players go through waivers when released starting next Wednesday (the day after the trading deadline). So, even though Josh Gordon is a vested veteran, he’d go on waivers if the #Patriots cut him off IR after that ... meaning the likes of the #Dolphins would have first crack.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 23, 2019
What if the Dolphins, whose coaching staff consists of several New England transplants, liked what they saw from Gordon during their time with the Patriots?
What if Miami’s offensive coordinator Chad O’Shea-who was New England’s WRs’ coach during Gordon’s time with the Patriots- recommends the once-explosive WR to Chris Grier and the rest of the Dolphins’ organization.
After all, O’Shea had a lot of nice things to say about Gordon in an interview with WEEI late last year.
“Josh has done everything we’ve asked him to do here,” he said. “He’s worked very hard. He’s done a great job of learning our offense, which at times can be difficult with the multiplicity of it and working with a veteran quarterback. I think he has done a great job of being a good teammate and certainly there’s a lot to improve on, but he’s continued to make progress and he’s really done everything we’ve asked him to do.”
O’Shea added: “He’s done a really good job of trying to learn our offense. He’s done a great job of spending extra time, not only with Tom [Brady], but our other receivers that have been helpful to him in learning not only our offense, but the way we do things here. It’s been a very positive experience here so far.”
And who could forget the latest rumors surrounding DeVante Parker who could be on the trade block.
What if the rumors are true, and Miami plans on trading Parker before the October 29th deadline? That would certainly clear space on the depth chart, and prevent a need for an explosive WR, in an offense Gordon is already familiar with.
And before you begin to wonder what his salary looks like, he’s making a modest $2.025M in 2019, and will be an unrestricted free agent in 2020.
But what if the Dolphins don’t put a claim in for Gordon. Maybe, they like their current stable of WRs, and would rather hang on to DeVante Parker than reshuffle the locker room mid-season.
Furthermore, Gordon isn’t the same WR many believe he was destined to be after an impressive rookie season. Maybe Miami sees a player on the decline and chooses not to use their top waiver priority.
In the end, no one knows if Gordon will be claimed, and how he would fare in a new locker room that isn’t as successful as New England.
But in an offseason littered with one low-risk, high-reward signing after another, plucking Josh Gordon off of waivers after being released by big brother in New England, just seems like the right thing to do.