Pete Carroll: Seahawks Excited For Josh Gordon's Return

Wide receiver Josh Gordon has been reinstated, and while most people seem to have forgotten about him, Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll sure is happy to see him return.

“I just had a chance to visit with him for the first time. We’ve been waiting for this for some time now, and we're really thrilled to be getting him back," Carroll told KIRO radio, via ESPN.

Gordon was suspended last December for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. He has been suspended seven times overall, five times for using PEDs. He appeared in five games with the Seahawks last season.

As Carroll pointed out, Gordon has never been a problem when it comes to being a good teammate and playing hard. Reliability, however, has clearly been an issue.

"He’s a really good kid. He really gets along with everybody," Carroll said. "He’s just a sharp football player, hard worker, just a tremendously classy athlete. Everything comes easy to him. He’s just so fluid and just such a beautiful player. There’s been only waiting for him. He made a great first impression when he was here before.”

Seattle is 8-3 and in first place in the NFC West. The team will play the New York Giants at home on Sunday. They can afford to take some high-risk, high-reward chances on talents like Gordon.

That said, he hasn't played an entire season since his rookie year of 2012, and he won't be eligible until Week 16 this year.

No matter, Carroll claims.

“We’re just anxious to include him and see if we can get him involved and make him more of a factor when he gets comfortable with us,” Carroll said.

Gordon will be eligible to start practice with the Seahawks on Dec. 21.