The spotty behavioral history of Antonio Callaway was always going to mean he'd have very little margin for error as he tried to forge his NFL comeback as a member of the Dallas Cowboys.
And then the receiver erred, and after his latest brush with the law, the Cowboys released him from the roster. That incident and the transaction occurred in June; Callaway has now issued a response to it all.
“Odds against me,” Callaway wrote in an Instagram Story.
We don't know specifically what Callaway's angle here is. Is he talking about his NFL future? Even at just age 26, he might be right. Character concerns have followed him since his time at the University of Florida and then even after being drafted by the Cleveland Browns - who got him in the fourth round exactly due to those concerns.
Callaway, though playing well as a rookie - he totaled 43 for 586 yards and five touchdowns - was soon after suspended multiple times for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy. The Cowboys gave him a second chance by signing him to the practice squad last November, and he did just enough to receive a futures contract after the end of the season.
When Callaway says, "Odds against me,'' is he talking about the mountain he would've needed to climb in Dallas to ever actually make the team? Maybe so. While some observers (without having ever set foot here inside The Star) were projecting him as a candidate to be the fourth wideout, the Cowboys themselves knew that CeeDee Lamb, Brandin Cooks and Michael Gallup would be the top four guys, with Jalen Tolbert and Simi Fehoko battling for that No. 4 spot ... and Callaway way back in the chase along with a dozen other unproven and nearly faceless candidates.
But we'd all heard of Callaway, so we feigned insight ... while the Cowboys, armed with real insight, reacted quickly by cutting ties with Callaway even though it was "just a traffic stop.'' In fact, of course, it was something slightly more than that: Callaway has a history of driving without a legal license and of failing to pay the appropriate fines, and there was a warrant out for his arrest.
Is this some heinous crime? No. Does it demonstrate a lack of maturity and a lack of responsibility that the Cowboys were hoping Callaway could repair by being a part of this team? Absolutely.
Finally, when Callaway says "Odds against me,'' is he talking not about the NFL or about the Cowboys but rather about the cards life has dealt him? Maybe. If so, that is sad enough ... and we certainly wish him well on his journey to happiness - regardless of football.
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