There are fans who thought the New England Patriots' receiving pool was unfairly talented before the season even started. One can only imagine what they felt after Antonio Brown somehow ended up in New England.
Josh Gordon is one of the players who are included in the elite wideout group. Naturally, he is happy that another talented set of safe hands has joined the team in Antonio Brown. However, he thinks that the former Steeler will also have quite an adjustment to make to fit in the Pats organization.
He revealed to the media that he had to make himself feel comfortable in the Pats offense when he first came in via trade in 2018. He wouldn't be surprised if Brown goes through the same shock that he did.
“For me, initially it was a culture shock,” Gordon said, as reported by Pro Football Talk's Josh Alper. “It was definitely different. I think as I grew in this environment and got to observe other young men move and organize and act professionally, expectations were high. It wasn’t anything more than what I think they knew that they could do was being asked of them.
“I was like, ‘Alright, this is the way it’s done here.' I could either get with it, or look for a transition somewhere else. It’s tough, but if this is what you want to do, I think this is the best place to be. Antonio is going to have to figure out his way, just like everybody else has.”
There's no question that the Pats can use a person of Brown's talents. He finished 2018 with 104 receptions for 1,297 yards. He also led the entire NFL in receiving TDs with a career-high 15.
However, he cannot pull off the same stunts he did at Pittsburgh and Oakland. He is joining a team of perennial winners and will be expected to act like one.
