Cleveland is taking a chance on a talented prospect riddled with question marks.
The Browns traded up with the Patriots to select Florida wide receiver Antonio Callaway with the No. 105 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. New England will receive picks Nos. 114 and 178 as compensation.
Because he wound up in Cleveland, Callaway will draw immediate comparisons to Josh Gordon, another intriguing talent with a litany of off-field issues.
Callaway is as "gifted as any wide receiver in this entire class," NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock said. On the other hand, Mayock added, he's been removed from the draft boards of many teams after missing last season due to suspension.
One scout predicted to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero that Callaway would have been a top-20 pick if he was clean off the field.
"He is super talented. The tape from his sophomore season's really good," another scout told Pelissero. "But he is a train wreck when it comes to some of that off-field stuff. Poor decision-making at every turn."
The list of Callaway's transgressions is lengthy, starting with a diluted drug-test sample at the NFL Scouting Combine. His past also includes a sexual assault allegation (of which he was eventually cleared), a misdemeanor marijuana citation and involvement in a credit-card scam that resulted in a pair of third-degree felony charges.
General manager John Dorsey met with reporters shortly after the selection, noting the Browns' support system will help the embattled wideout.
"I just want you all to realize one thing: He'll understand what it means to be a Cleveland Brown," Dorsey said. "Once he understands 100 percent what it means to be a Cleveland Brown, the Cleveland Browns are 100 percent committed to make this man a football player."
Callaway recently spoke with NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport, taking responsibility "for everything I caused on myself." The former Gators star has turned to Steelers All-Pro Antonio Brown for guidance as he enters the NFL.
"He's taking me under his wing, like a little brother," Callaway said of Brown. "His message was, there's too much opportunity there for me to be messing up and I gotta change now that I'm a father. It ain't too much about athletics, just really about life and how you have to make good decisions."
After years in suspension purgatory, Gordon finally has his head on straight. The Browns are banking on Callaway's ability to come through with a similar turnaround.
