On Tuesday, some rather troubling news broke regarding Cleveland Browns rookie receiver Antonio Callaway, who received a citation for marijuana possession and driving with a suspended license early Sunday morning.
Callaway entered the NFL with some big red flags for off-field concerns, including previous issues with marijuana at Florida, and then a positive test at the NFL Scouting Combine back in February. He also had missed the entire 2017 college football season on suspension due to his involvement in a credit card fraud case.
Needless to say, the Browns certainly took a risk selecting him in the draft, trading up for him in the fourth round.
On Tuesday afternoon after practice, Hue Jackson confirmed to reporters that he was just now hearing about Callaway’s citation for marijuana.
#Browns head coach Hue Jackson reacts to Antonio Callaway news pic.twitter.com/Hjsoz4IysX
— Daryl Ruiter (@RuiterWrongFAN) August 7, 2018
“I’m just now finding out about it,” Jackson said, “but obviously I think — you guys know me pretty well — we’ll have a very strong conversation about it.”
He also said, “until I know the facts, I won’t say anything about anything.”
Callaway has been performing extremely well during training camp. He was recently promoted to the first-team offense. The Browns traded fellow receiver Corey Coleman to the Buffalo Bills, just hours after Callaway was busted for marijuana, without having known about his incident.
Needless to say, the timing is terrible. But the Browns did know this young man had red flags and still took a chance, hoping the young man would be ready to leave his past indiscretions behind him.
Obviously that has not yet happened. Now the Browns have a tough decision to make. Because Callaway tested positive for marijuana at the combine, he’s already in the NFL’s drug program, which means he could be facing a suspension.