BEREA, Ohio -- Hue Jackson will rip open his biggest Christmas present this week in Josh Gordon, put the batteries in, flip the 'on' switch and let 'er rip in his debut Sunday against the Chargers in Los Angeles.

"My plans for him? Oh boy, let me tell you, I have big plans for him,'' Jackson said Monday. "I plan for him to play and play as much as he can handle. He's a very talented player. He needs to get out there and play but we have to see where he is and make sure how much can he handle, how much can he do."

Gordon was eligible to come off the Commissioner's Exempt list Monday, but the Browns will likely wait until at least Friday when they leave for Los Angeles. They can delay the decision until next Monday, but they have no plans of doing that.

The Browns are 0-11 and need all the help they can get to avoid becoming the second member of the exclusive 0-16 club. So when a 6-3, 225-pound Pro Bowl receiver who led the NFL with 1,646 yards in 2013 drops in your lap, you accept the gift and use it right away.

Especially when your 2016 No. 15 overall pick in Corey Coleman drops a touchdown pass in the end zone in Cincinnati.

"He gives me energy, which means I'm going to give (his teammates) energy, which means they will have energy,'' said Jackson. "Yeah, Josh is a good player. I don't want to make it more than what it is because he's not played for me really other than in the preseason games. Hopefully, Josh will come back and bring a different spirit to our offensive football team and football team and he can make some plays.

"If he does that, then he'll be doing just what we need him to do. The players have seen him out there and they've seen what he can do. They're excited about him playing and about playing with him. That within itself will bring something to this football team."

Left guard Joel Bitonio, who played five games with Gordon at the end of 2014, acknowledged Gordon will provide a lift, but he also pumped the brakes a bit.



The last time Gordon came back from a long suspension, Nov. 23, 2014 in Atlanta, he caught eight of 16 targets for 120 yards in a 26-24 Browns victory. But he struggled at times, and was often a liability for Brian Hoyer because of errant route-running.

In his final three games before being suspended for the finale for missing practice, he caught two, three and four passes. Hoyer also threw eight interceptions in the first four of those games, with many of them intended for Gordon.



"Anytime you bring a player back of Josh's talent, it's going to bring a spark to the offense,'' said Bitonio. "He's also been out of football for a while. So no matter how good a shape he's in, expectations have to be tempered a little bit, but I think there's going to be a jolt in practice, exciting.



"I don't know what the game plan is for him yet or anything like that yet, but he was an All-Pro. He was one of the best receivers in the game when he had (14) games the last time he played and we're looking forward to bringing that spark. I think that helps protections, it helps the run game, that helps the quarterback and maybe the offense being lifted up will help the defense, too. It could be a big week for him."



Of course, Gordon has since admitted that he either drank or smoked before every one of his games in college and the pros, which could've been a factor at the end of 2014. He admitted that once he got suspended for the 2014 finale, he went right back to partying.



"I'm just happy he's able to play the game he loves and he's in a good spot personally,'' said Bitonio. "I think anything else on the field is a bonus for him, actually. But he's a ball player. He's going to come out. He's ready to play football.''



Quarterback DeShone, who's fiercely loyal to the guys that have been trying to make plays for him all season, is measuring his words carefully about Gordon so as not to make it seem like he'll be the savior.



"I think that he's going to be a great asset,'' Kizer said. "I think yes, he's going to be a big help for us on offense, but if you're still looking for something to get you up after being 0-11 then you're not playing the right sport. You're not in the right industry. At 0-11, the only thing that should be driving you is your first win.''



He doesn't envision forcing the ball to Gordon the way the Browns did when he returned in 2014 following a 10-game ban. But Gordon will undoubtedly look good to him in the red zone, where the Browns have struggled mightily. They're 31st in red zone offense, scoring TDs on only 13 of their 30 trips inside the 20 for 43.3%.



"This roster is a lot different than many of the rosters in the past, when you have Duke Johnson playing at the level he's playing at, you have David Njoku, who's proven to be a matchup nightmare himself. Corey Coleman is 100 percent now and then you add him. So now we have guys all over the field.



"There isn't a specific pressure to get the ball to Josh. We know he's a playmaker and we want the ball in his hands, but there's quite a few playmakers out there with us now that we'll be able to spread this ball as much as we can.''



Still, he acknowledged "the emphasis on him coming in and having a huge impact as soon as possible."



Kizer, who threw to Texans' first-round receiver Will Fuller in his first season as a starter at Notre Dame, dismissed the notion that he's finally got another playmaker of that caliber in Gordon.



"Will Fuller is an awesome, fast, small talent, and Josh Gordon is (6-3, 225) pounds,'' said Kizer. "I haven't played with anyone like him. It's going to be a new experience with me. I've been able to look out and see a lot of great talent around us that'll continue to develop with Ricardo (Louis), Rashard (Higgins), Corey (Coleman).



"All those guys have been able to go out there and make some big plays for us. Kenny (Britt's) been out there making big plays now. It's going to be the first time ever where I can step out there and see four guys who are all big playmakers.''

Kizer got a feel for Gordon in practice last week, where one source told cleveland.com, that he stepped on the field and was instantly the best player on the team. But they'll have to work overtime this week to be ready for the Chargers and their No. 7 pass defense.

"With his speed and size he's obviously a tremendous talent and we're looking forward to allowing him to make some big plays for us,'' he said. "It's going to be on me to make sure that I spend as much time as I can with him and understand the way he thinks and the way that he wants the ball and make sure that I can put it there for him."



Fortunately for Kizer, he's worked hard on his touch, especially over the bye week, and his passes are more catchable now.



It couldn't have come at a better time.