TODAY’S GAME
Browns at Giants, 7 p.m., NFL Network session and driving suspended license.
The incident occurred about 19 hours before the Browns traded Corey Cole- man to the Bills and elevated Callaway to his spot. Call- away failed to inform the Browns, and they made him available to the media on Monday, his first full day replacing Coleman.
A source told The Plain Dealer that Callaway had his car shipped to Cleveland just a few days ago from Florida, and that he hadn’t been in it for weeks. Meanwhile, his friends had been driving it. When police asked if they could search the car, Calla- way said yes, not realizing there was marijuana in it.
The police report states a small amount was found under the seat, likely just enough for a minor misdemeanor. As for the suspended license, Callaway thought it had been taken care of, but in moving to Cleveland and changing banks, s ome thi n gs fell through the cracks, said the source.
The Browns drafted Callaway in the fourth round out of Florida, taking a gamble on a player with a laundry list of off-the-field issues, including a suspension for all of last season for par- with a ticipating in a credit card scam. He also had a dilute sample at the NFL combine, and later admitted he had smoked marijuana several weeks beforehand.
The sample landed him in Stage 1 of the NFL’s substance abuse program, and he now faces a fine worth 3/17 of his base salary, or $84,705.
Jackson made it clear that he’s talked to Callaway about how to conduct himself “quite a bit. This is surprising to me. It is. He’s a young guy. Here’s some- thing that had happened and we have to deal with it. To understand it first, before I talk about consequences or anything, is important.”
Jackson was careful not to rush to judgment, and still believes the Browns have a strong support system that can handle players with issues.
“I’m still confident in that,” he said. “I want to understand it. What you guys have said and what it is might be something dif- ferent. That’s all I am saying. What (general manager) John (Dorsey) said is abso- lutely right. I support him 100 percent.”
Jackson said he’s surprised because “he’s been great. We’ve had no slip-ups, no issues. This is a young player, who obviously made a bad decision or bad choice. I have to find out. Believe me, when we find out more of the facts, I will tell you straight out, exactly what it is when I know.”
“My job is to make sure that I look into these things, understand them all, and then, the person has to deal with the consequences that comes with it,” said Jack- son. “We do not take things lightly, but the same time, until I know everything about it, I do not want to make a strong comment one way or the other.”
Callaway’s hearing is 9:30 a.m. today in Strongville’s Mayor’s Court. It’s not yet known if he’ll attend. The Browns traveled to New York on Wednesday for the preseason opener tonight against the Giants.
In addition to trading Cole- man, the Browns are still waiting for Josh Gordon to return from his health sab- batical in Gainesville, Fla.
“There’s not a good time for any of this, at any time,” said Jackson. “At the same time, I don’t want to look at it based on Corey not being here and this happening. It happened. Let’s deal with it and move on.”
He noted that the Browns have been relatively incident-free over the last couple of years.
“We have not had things pop up,” he said. “This is something — I am glad it is happening now, so we can deal with it and move forward. Our locker room understands how we handle business. This young man will definitely under- stand how we handle busi- ness, too.”