Belichick Refusing to Acknowledge the Josh Gordon Trade is My Favorite Part of 2018 So Far
Just when you thought the Patriots landing a wide receiver who once had 1,600 yards and 9 TDs in just 14 games for a swap of conditional draft picks was the best thing that happened all week, I give you this. From Bill Belichick’s most recent press conference:
BB: So, we’re still working through some transactions on the team, so we’ll have those for you when we start practice. We should have them by then….
Q: So, when you say you’re still working through some transactions, we should not ask about Josh Gordon?
BB: You can ask. I can’t – we’ll talk about it when it’s done, if it’s done, when it’s done.
Q: So, that transaction is not yet done even though it was on the wire yesterday?
BB: That’s correct.
Q: What is still pending in the process?
BB: The finish of the trade. …
Q: Can we ask you generally about Gordon as a player previously?
BB: No, I’m not going to talk about players that are not actually, I would say, on our roster totally. So, when that happens, it happens, if it happens.
Now, bear in mind, this was two full days after after the trade was announced. Two full days after he went on WEEI and refused to talk about it because it wasn’t finalized. Since then, this has happened:
And this:
Even this:
We’re now into Thursday, and yet the name “Josh Gordon” has not passed Belichick’s sullen, frowning lips. Because the trade isn’t done, finished or happened. Even after this:
I love it. God help me, how I love it so. The master manipulator. The Great Incommunicator, at the height of his powers. He’s made the most dramatic personnel move of the season so far. He’s got a polarizing, high profile, controversy magnet on his roster, in his locker room so close to his franchise quarterback he’s at risk of getting a contact high, and running around on the practice field wearing a No. 10 jersey. Which coincidentally happens to be the same jersey with “GORDON” on it the NFL just started selling for 100 bucks:
So what does he do? How does he avoid answering a thousand questions about Gordon’s drug use, his suspensions, his failures to get his career back on track? By refusing to acknowledge Gordon is even here. That’s how he disarms the reporters. He grabs the gun out of their hands, disassembles it and then slaps them around by pretending the deal isn’t final. Despite the finality of the deal. He rejects everyone else’s reality and substitutes his own. It’s just genius beyond the capacity of human comprehension.
By my math, this leaves The Hooded One one more press availability before the team hops Air Kraft One for Detroit to deny the existence of a fella named Josh Gordon on his team. After that, from Sunday night on, he can stick with the “We’re just here to talk about this game” followed by “We’re just focused on Miami.” Needless to say, it’s going to take all of his powers and it’s going to be fascinating to see if he can pull it off. If anyone ever could, it’s The Great Incommunicator. It can’t come soon enough.