Johnny Manziel still has a lot of anger toward the Cleveland Browns. He’s openly bitter, and not everyone is buying his grievances.
It started when an old video of Manziel from an appearance on the “Nightcap” podcast went viral, in which he let it all out. He said he goes back and forth on whether to forgive the Browns, but ultimately made up his mind.
Cleveland’s Radio Hosts Couldn’t Understand Where Johnny Manziel’s Bitterness Comes from
The former Browns quarterback also made it clear he actively roots against his former team every single Sunday. “No love for the Browns. I’m rooting for 0-16 seasons every season,” he stated bluntly. That comment caught the attention of Tony Rizzo on “The Tony Rizzo Show,” and Rizzo wasn’t having it.
“What did anyone do for you except root for you to win?” Rizzo asked Manziel. He pushed further, asking whether someone had actually wronged Manziel in some specific way.
“Did someone hurt him? Is he a jilted lover?” Rizzo added. “Was there an incident where somebody attacked him? Why the hate? Why the hate for the team that drafted you?”
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The Browns selected Manziel with the No. 22 pick in the 2014 NFL Draft. He was Johnny Football, the Heisman Trophy winner who was supposed to finally solve Cleveland’s long-running quarterback problem, and the fan base was all in. But it didn’t work out.
Over two seasons, Manziel started just 8 games. He threw for 1,675 yards, 7 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions, finishing with a 74.4 passer rating.
“What did anyone do to you, except root for you to win,” – Rizz responds to Johnny Manziel. https://t.co/TL36HPdon9 pic.twitter.com/zHlruuQ9KO
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) June 29, 2026
The Browns cut him in 2016, and the following year, in 2017, they went 0-16 without him.
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Rizzo’s co-host Chris Oldach was equally stumped by the animosity. He said he genuinely couldn’t explain where Manziel’s bitterness comes from. “I can’t answer that for him. I don’t know,” Oldach said.
He acknowledged that Manziel might have felt the organization never built a winning team around him. But then Oldach flipped it around entirely.
“He’s the guy who didn’t put in any work while he was here,” Oldach said plainly. “He was the guy that would leave after a Monday practice to go party.”
That’s why many people have a hard time getting behind Manziel’s public grudge. His off-field issues were well documented, and questions about his commitment were hardly a secret. The Browns gave him opportunities, but by most accounts, he failed to make the most of them.
The most surprising part is who Manziel seems to blame. Not a former coach or front-office executive, but an entire city and fan base that once believed he could change the franchise’s fortunes.
Rizzo summed up the situation well. He considered every explanation for Manziel’s resentment and couldn’t find one that fit.
There was no clear falling-out or singular moment that explains it, only a career that unraveled and a player who seems to hold Cleveland responsible.
