Antonio Callaway (born January 9, 1997) is an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
wide receiver for the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL). He played
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
at
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, and was drafted by the
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
in the fourth round of the
2018 NFL Draft
The 2018 NFL Draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; it was the first draft ...
.
Early years
Callaway attended
Booker T. Washington High School in
Miami, Florida
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
.
College career
As a
wide receiver at the University of Florida, he made an immediate impact in his true freshman season. He was selected All-American as a return specialist by CBS Sports in 2015. The 2015 Gators got off to an unexpected 6–0 start after entering their first four games unranked in the AP Poll. Their fourth victory was a thrilling 28–27 come-from-behind victory over
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
as
Will Grier
William Grier (born April 3, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida and West Virginia and was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the third ro ...
completed a pass on 4th-and-14 to Callaway for a 63-yard touchdown, and Tennessee could not respond as they missed a 55-yard field goal attempt as time expired. Callaway finished the
2015 season as Florida's leading receiver with 35 catches for 678 yards and four touchdowns.
In January 2016, Callaway and quarterback
Treon Harris were suspended from the team. Florida head coach
Jim McElwain
James Frank McElwain (born March 1, 1962) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach at Central Michigan University. He previously served as the head coach at Florida from 2015 to 2017, and Colorado State from 2012 to 2014, ...
said the suspensions were related to "schoolwork." It was later revealed that the suspensions were related to an accusation of sexual assault. A woman accused Callaway of sexual assault and Harris of attempted sexual assault in December 2015. The woman reported the alleged incident to Florida's student conduct and conflict resolution office, but did not report the incident to either Gainesville police or University of Florida police. The University of Florida suspended both players for violating the school's code of conduct policy. Both players remained suspended until June, when they returned to campus to take classes and work out at the school's facilities. Callaway was found not responsible of sexually assaulting the female student by an independent hearing officer in a Title IX hearing. The ruling was made by attorney Jake Schickel, a former track and field athlete at Florida who has donated money to Florida's football and basketball programs. Schickel cleared Callaway of three violations of Florida's student conduct code, which included endangering another's health or safety, sexual assault and sexual misconduct, and conduct causing physical injury.
On December 7, 2017, while suspended, Callaway made the decision that he was going to enter the
2018 NFL Draft
The 2018 NFL Draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; it was the first draft ...
.
Collegiate statistics
Professional career
Cleveland Browns
The
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
selected Callaway in the fourth round (105th overall) of the
2018 NFL Draft
The 2018 NFL Draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; it was the first draft ...
. The Cleveland Browns traded their fourth (114th overall) and sixth round picks (178th overall) to the
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
and received the Patriots' fourth round pick (105th overall) in exchange in order to draft Callaway. Callaway was the 12th wide receiver drafted in 2018.
2018 season
On May 21, 2018, the Cleveland Browns signed Callaway to a four-year,
$3.17 million contract that includes a
signing bonus
A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...
of $717,853.
Callaway began training camp competing against
Jeff Janis
Jeffrey Ronald "Jeff" Janis (born June 24, 1991) is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football at Saginaw Valley State, and was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the seventh round of the 2014 NFL Draft.
Early year ...
,
Ricardo Louis, and
Rashard Higgins
Rashard Malick Higgins (born October 7, 1994), nicknamed "Hollywood", is an American football wide receiver for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Colorado State.
Early years
Higgins atte ...
for the job as the fourth wide receiver on the Browns' depth chart. Callaway and Rashard Higgins became contenders for a starting wide receiver position after
Corey Coleman
Corey Defians Coleman (born July 6, 1994) is an American football wide receiver for the Philadelphia Stars of the United States Football League (USFL). He played college football at Baylor and was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the first ...
was granted a trade request on August 5, 2018. Head coach
Hue Jackson
Hue Jackson (born October 22, 1965) is an American football coach who is the head football coach at Grambling State University. An offensive assistant at both the collegiate and professional levels, he held coordinator positions in the Nationa ...
named Callaway the third wide receiver on the depth chart to start the regular season, behind
Jarvis Landry
Jarvis Charles Landry (born November 28, 1992) is an American football wide receiver for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU and was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the second round o ...
and
Josh Gordon
Joshua Caleb Gordon (born April 13, 1991) is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He previously played for the Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Tennessee Titans. Nicknamed ...
.
He made his professional regular season debut in the
Cleveland Browns' season-opener against the
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
and returned a kick for an eight-yard gain during their 21–21 tie. On September 16, 2018, Callaway earned his first career start and replaced
Josh Gordon
Joshua Caleb Gordon (born April 13, 1991) is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He previously played for the Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Tennessee Titans. Nicknamed ...
due to a hamstring injury. He recorded three receptions for 81-yards and scored his first career touchdown during a 21–18 loss at the
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...
in Week 2. Callaway caught his first career touchdown reception on a 47-yard pass by Browns' quarterback
Tyrod Taylor
Tyrod Diallo Taylor (born August 3, 1989) is an American football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Virginia Tech, leading the Hokies to the 2009 Orange Bowl as a Sophomore ...
during the fourth quarter. The following day, head coach Hue Jackson named Callaway the starting wide receiver after the Browns traded Josh Gordon to the
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
. In Week 8, Callaway made a season-high five receptions for 36-yards and caught a one-yard touchdown pass thrown by
Baker Mayfield
Baker Reagan Mayfield (born April 14, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). Following a stint with Texas Tech, Mayfield played college football at Oklahoma, where he won the Hei ...
as the Browns lost 33–18 at the
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
.
2019 season
On August 9, 2019, Callaway was suspended for the first four games of the 2019 season for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. He was reinstated from suspension on September 30, and was activated prior to Week 5. On November 14, the Browns waived Callaway after showing up late to meetings and practices. He was also facing a 10-game suspension at the time of his release. He lost his appeal on November 15, and was suspended for the final seven weeks of the 2019 regular season and the first three weeks of the 2020 regular season.
Tampa Bay Vipers
Callaway was signed by the
Tampa Bay Vipers
The Vegas Vipers are a professional American football team based in Las Vegas, Nevada. The team is an owned-and-operated member of the XFL, owned by RedBird Capital, Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia's Alpha Acquico, LLC.
The team began operation ...
of the
XFL
XFL may refer to:
Sports
* XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001
* XFL (2020), a professional American football league
Vehicles
* Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...
on January 16, 2020. He suffered a lower leg injury in practice on January 29, and was placed on
injured reserve
The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...
on January 30. He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.
Miami Dolphins
On September 7, 2020, Callaway was signed to the
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
practice squad, while still serving a three-game suspension. He was suspended an additional four games by the NFL on September 18. He was reinstated from suspension on November 2, and the team activated him back to the practice squad. He was elevated to the active roster on November 14 for the team's week 10 game against the
Los Angeles Chargers
The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...
, and reverted to the practice squad after the game. Callaway was promoted to the active roster on November 18, 2020. The Dolphins waived Callaway on December 21, 2020.
Kansas City Chiefs
On January 13, 2021, Callaway signed a reserve/futures contract with the
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
The tea ...
. He was waived with an injury designation on August 17. After going unclaimed on waivers, he was put on the Chiefs' injured reserve. He was released on August 26 after reaching an injury settlement with the Chiefs.
Dallas Cowboys
On November 11, 2022, the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
hosted Callaway for a workout. He was signed to the team’s practice squad four days later.
NFL career statistics
Legal issues
On August 5, 2018, Callaway was issued a citation in Strongsville, Ohio for possession of marijuana and driving with a suspended license during a traffic stop at 3am. The drug charges were dropped, and Callaway paid $911 for the license violation.
See also
*
2015 College Football All-America Team
The 2015 College Football All-America Team includes those players of American college football who have been honored by various selector organizations as the best players at their respective positions. The selector organizations award the "All-Am ...
References
External links
Cleveland Browns bioFlorida Gators bio*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Callaway, Antonio
1997 births
Living people
Booker T. Washington Senior High School (Miami, Florida) alumni
Players of American football from Miami
American football wide receivers
American football return specialists
Florida Gators football players
All-American college football players
Cleveland Browns players
Tampa Bay Vipers players
Miami Dolphins players
Kansas City Chiefs players
Dallas Cowboys players