No matter what happens in Donte Stallworth’s personal life, the veteran wide receiver always seems to land with an NFL team.
Stallworth, who is recovering from a life-threatening hot air balloon crash that gave him serious burn injuries, appeared on the practice field for the Washington Redskins on Tuesday. In a published report by the Associated Press, Mike Shanahan was quoted as saying that he “hopes to sign (Stallworth) this week.” He was participating in Tuesday’s workout as a “tryout” player, but with his NFL pedigree, he is hardly the normal tryout candidate.
Stallworth has appeared in 115 NFL games with 6 teams, and has generally been a productive player for his entire career. While his career numbers won’t “wow” you (4,837 yards, 35 touchdowns), Stallworth possesses one of the great weapons on a football field in that he has outstanding speed. Even at age 32, Stallworth can still flat-out fly, and there is a reason that he continues to latch on with NFL rosters despite off-field troubles.
In addition to the aforementioned balloon accident, Stallworth pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter in 2009, after striking a pedestrian with his car while being legally intoxicated. Following the arrest/sentence, he sat out the 2009 NFL season, but managed to receive a contract with the Baltimore Ravens in 2010, and he appeared in 8 games that season.
As Shanahan indicated, it would be almost expected to see Stallworth receive a contract with the Redskins in the near future. It is unknown whether he can still perform at a high enough level to sustain NFL success, but he certainly keeps appearing on rosters, and that’s not changing anytime soon.