FOXBORO — Not long ago, the locker adjacent to Tom Brady’s belonged to Brandon LaFell.

LaFell entered the picture in 2014, quickly establishing a bond with Brady and emerging as a key wide receiver for that season’s Super Bowl-winning Patriots team.

That’s around the time when Josh Gordon’s career stalled.

LaFell and Gordon go way back. The former was a stud receiver at Lamar High School in Houston in the early 2000s. The latter followed LaFell at Lamar, did everything LaFell could do as a perimeter wideout, but just did it better.

“A manchild,” LaFell said.

LaFell and Gordon share a friendship that has lasted a decade. They now share a connection in New England, where Gordon hopes to resurrect what once looked like a Hall of Fame career.

“I think it’s definitely a good environment because he has to know he’s running out of opportunities,” LaFell said. “People are not going to continue to give you chance after chance. . . . I feel like the structure around there — Bill (Belichick), Tom (Brady), and just to see the way other guys around him work and become selfless and all about the team — I think that’s going to be great for Josh to buy in and put himself on the backburner and be all about the Patriots.”

Now with the Raiders, LaFell is one of the few players with intimate knowledge of the Patriots and a long history with Gordon. Another is Andrew Hawkins, who was Gordon’s teammate with the Browns from 2014-16 and, briefly, a member of the Pats. Hawkins spent the beginning of the 2017 offseason in New England and the receiver announced his retirement prior to training camp. He now works for various media outlets, including ESPN hosting “SportsCenter” on Snapchat.

Yesterday, the first words out of Hawkins’ mouth regarding Gordon were “super, super smart guy.”

“You just talk to him and feel the way he communicates and the way he comprehends, and you realize, ‘Oh this guy, he has a lot to him,’ ” Hawkins said. “He really is a smart guy.”

In Cleveland, Gordon had zero issues learning the playbook, according to Hawkins. And the Browns cycled five offensive coordinators in Gordon’s first five seasons. But having played here, Hawkins cautioned it might not be so easy this time. The Patriots offense is “unlike anything” Hawkins had ever experienced.

Gordon’s friends describe him as quiet and laid-back. He’s so laid-back, according to LaFell, that his demeanor “rubs some guys the wrong way.”

“They think he doesn’t care,” LaFell said. “But he cares about just about everything.”

Of course, Gordon’s struggles have been well documented. He’s appeared in 11 games since his breakout 2013 campaign, the prime of his career wiped away by suspensions and various substance-abuse issues. He’s battled addiction and stumbled along the way, but once Gordon opened up about his problems, Hawkins said, there was discernible progress.

“Josh now is not the same Josh that I knew four years ago, and that’s a good thing,” Hawkins said. “It’s a process. He’s doing the right things and taking the right steps. That’s not to say he’s perfect, and that’s not to say he’s going to be perfect. But unfortunately, that’s a side of substance abuse that is a reality for everybody.”

Gordon missed most of August as he focused on his sobriety and mental health. He returned for the start of the 2018 season and flashed his potential, ripping a jump ball away from Steelers cornerback Cameron Sutton for a game-tying touchdown in Week 1.

This is a guy, according to Hawkins, who in the offseason needs to abstain from lifting weights because he naturally packs on muscle so quickly. He’d get too bulky if he lifts weights. So he sticks to bands.

“Within weeks he would look like a defensive end,” Hawkins said.

Noted LaFell, “For a guy to just walk into the locker room, just ripped and cut-up as he is, based off doing band work, it’s ridiculous.”

Hawkins lists Gordon with Brady, Rob Gronkowski and A.J. Green as the most talented players he’s seen up-close. LaFell remembers in 2013 telling his teammates in Carolina that Gordon will “take it to the house” on any bubble screen or slant.

LaFell, who referred to himself as a “big brother” to Gordon, hasn’t yet connected with the newest Patriot. He’s giving Gordon space until the attention settles down.

“There’s absolutely no tolerance up there,” LaFell said. “Be early. Don’t miss anything that’s mandatory or voluntary. Make sure you’re sitting right by Tom in meetings, listening to Josh McDaniels speak. It’s a great situation. They’ve been doing great things. They’re going to continue to go great things. And they’re going to do great things with or without you, so you better buy in and be all about the team.”

As for the locker room? Stationed next to Brady, LaFell recalls talking football “all day.”

“(Gordon) is going to start to speak with Tom so much, talk about coverages so much, he’ll start to see the same thing Tom sees each and every play on the field,” LaFell said.

LaFell remained Brady’s locker mate for two years.

The Pats would be beyond thrilled if Josh Gordon can do the same.