RENTON, Wash. -- Wide receiver Josh Gordon passed his physical with the Seattle Seahawks and has been medically cleared to participate Thursday when the team returns to practice ahead of its Monday night game against the unbeaten San Francisco 49ers.
"He's ready to go," coach Pete Carroll said Monday. "Thursday, when we get rolling again, he'll be going. He's in the building studying and all that, getting ready. So we'll see how it goes."
The end of that comment from Carroll is in line with what he and general manager John Schneider have said about Gordon since the Seahawks claimed him off waivers on Friday. They've tried to temper expectations for the one-time Pro Bowler.
"I'm telling you I'm just waiting and seeing," Carroll said. "I've seen him on film. He looks pretty special. He's got a good history of making plays and all that, but I want to see him when he mixes with our guys and really just take it one step at a time with no expectations of how much he would contribute or play or whatever. I'm just going to see what happens."
The New England Patriots waived the 28-year-old Gordon last week following his stint on injured reserve. He was playing through a left knee injury and was knocked out of the Patriots' victory over the New York Giants on Oct. 10 when he hurt the knee while attempting to make a tackle after a New England fumble. The Patriots used the minor designation for his placement on IR, signifying a lesser injury. That meant the team had to release Gordon upon his return to health.
Carroll met with Gordon on Monday morning.
"He was really clear, excited to be here," Carroll said. "We had a good conversation on a lot of topics in a short time. He met with the coaches and all that. He's bright, sharp, ready to learn, humble, looking for the opportunity to make something happen to help the club. He seemingly had his sights on getting here. He was hoping to get here, so that's a good thing."
Schneider told 710 ESPN Seattle on Sunday that the Seahawks didn't think they'd have a chance to claim Gordon since they were 28th in the waiver order, saying, "We just took a shot."
The Seahawks will take on the remainder of Gordon's $2.025 million salary for 2019, which is not guaranteed.
"The risk was minimal, and we feel like we have the people here in place that can help him as well," Schneider said, alluding to Gordon's history of substance abuse and suspensions. "He's an extremely talented guy that has had his issues in the past, and we're going to give it a ride and don't expect him to come in being a white knight to save the day, but we know he's a damn good football player and we want to put him in the mix and let him compete with all the other guys."
Gordon becomes the eighth wide receiver on Seattle's active roster. That number could change if the team activates tight end Ed Dickson off IR this week. Dickson will practice for the second straight week, but Carroll didn't commit to him playing against the 49ers.
If all goes as the Seahawks hope, Gordon will give Russell Wilson another deep threat to go along with Tyler Lockett, rookie DK Metcalf and David Moore.
"He can stretch the field, and I know Russ was very excited about it," Schneider said of Gordon. "We'll see where it goes."
Asked about the plan the Seahawks have in place to help Gordon given his substance-abuse issues, Carroll said: "Hopefully we're putting together a really good plan and he has a really clear process that supports him and we're aligning to make sure that that continues and he feels very good about that. We're going to do our part that we can do here to accent and support his system that he's already got in order."
Carroll has a long history with players who come to Seattle with varying degrees of checkered pasts. Marshawn Lynch, Bruce Irvin, Percy Harvin and Frank Clark are among the more notable examples.
"My dad always said, 'Always give a guy a second chance,'" Carroll said. "Sometime when you do, remarkable things happen. In my way, I look at this as maybe a second opportunity for him. He's probably had a couple already. So we're going to give him a shot to go, see what he can do."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.