CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Josh Gordon will return Sunday to FirstEnergy Stadium, where he was cheered and booed, loved and hated, exalted and harassed. It's the place where he climbed to the pinnacle and then fell from grace.

So it's no wonder that Gordon has more of a tingle up his spine heading into Sunday's game against the Packers than he did last week in his 2017 debut against the Chargers.

He hasn't started a game at home in almost three years, since a 30-0 loss to the Bengals on Dec. 14, 2014, and he's not entirely sure what to expect.

"Definitely a different feeling for sure as a home compared to an away game,'' Gordon said Friday. "More emotional? For sure, I believe. I hope the fans are into it. I'll be into it and excited regardless of the occasion. It's just that extra amp because it is a home game and I haven't played here in a long time so I'm super excited.''

He's been generally well-received by most Browns fans in his latest comeback from a substance-abuse suspension. Which makes Gordon less apprehensive about playing here again.

In an interview last month with GQ, Gordon acknowledged that noise and criticism got to him.

"A lot. Every day,'' he said. "That's why I had to move out of Cleveland. I went to Gainesville specifically because I thought there'd be nobody there that would know who I was. Living in Cleveland, sometimes it could be a nightmare. I've been harassed, had drinks thrown at me. I've been [followed] in the grocery store, heckled everywhere.

"At the games, people harassed and heckled my brothers and my mom. [My] brothers got into fights in the stands. Cars [have] been jumped on. Somebody dented the hood of the car. Had to sue a guy and get the money back cause he damaged the car. People are throwing money, pennies, to break the windows. So Cleveland was rough, man.''

He said he would urge fans to give struggling young players a break.

"Give guys a chance,'' he said. "Be patient. Allow him to see it through. If he lets you down, he lets you down. But know that's a human being there. He's dealing with something.''

It definitely helps that Gordon proved to himself last week that despite the time off, suspensions and being four years older, he still has his amazing Pro Bowl ability. He caught four passes for 85 yards against Pro Bowler Casey Hayward, but could've had 200 yards and a couple of touchdowns if DeShone Kizer had been on target.

"I was just happy, happy for what I was able to accomplish and overcome to get to that point," he said. "That meant a lot to me. Not surprised, but just really grateful, blessed, happy about it. Some sense of pride, like 'you did it, you accomplished something, now keep on building from here.' I was just happy that I reached a goal.''

It also marked the first time Gordon has played a game in college or the pros without taking the edge off with marijuana or alcohol.

"I got to come into this game with an advantage, with an edge just from a psychological standpoint just being so amped up and ready to play more than anything,'' he said. "They say play as if it's our last game. I know what that feels like now. So I put that mentality toward every practice and every game, every meeting and everything that we have. That's the attitude that I have."

Streaking down the sidelines and climbing the ladder over Casey Hayward for a 28-yard catch felt natural, like he's done it every day for the past three years.

Two days after the game, Hayward told Sirius XM NFL Radio that Gordon was his toughest matchup of the season along with Odell Beckham Jr.

"Definitely grateful for it. The opportunity just to be able to play again, it just shows that the work I'm putting in is being done in the right way."

Gordon acknowledged that connecting with rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer only four of 11 times wasn't enough, but said they made strides in practice this week.

"Hopefully we can continue to see some flashes of some greatness," he said. "That's what we're looking to bring out of him ... so we're going to get behind him 100 percent and show that love and support and try to help get that positive reinforcement that he could do it.''

Gordon was also happy to learn that Hue Jackson will be back next season.

"I'm glad he's here,'' said Gordon. "He keeps things stable, familiar and to have something to build upon makes it easy on the players. I've been in the position before with new coaches, new owners, new GMs and new (offensive coordinators) plenty of times. Definitely never looking forward to that situation. I'm glad we got to keep some things in place."

But moreso than anything, he's grateful to be a part of it.