Johnny Manziel had a brief but tumultuous NFL career with the Cleveland Browns. After lighting it up at Texas A&M, the quarterback quickly bottomed out in Cleveland, and hasn’t been back in the NFL since the 2015 season.
Manziel recently spoke about his time in Cleveland, and a pair of NFL legends reacted to his comments.
Chad Johnson and Shannon Sharpe Bash Ex-Browns QB Johnny Manziel for Blaming His Career on Cleveland
The Browns made Manziel the 22nd overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft after his stellar college career. He was the backup for Brian Hoyer through the team’s first 13 games , where the Browns amassed a 7-6 record. He went 0-2 once he was inserted in the lineup before being placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury.
Josh McCown was named the starter heading into the 2015 season, but Manziel started six games when McCown was injured. Manziel went 2-4 in those six games, but his decision to go to Las Vegas instead of staying in Cleveland for the team’s regular season finale was essentially the final nail in the coffin for his time with the Browns.
He spoke about his time in Cleveland on “Impaulsive,” putting down the city by saying, “That place definitely added to my f***ing depression along the way, for sure.” NFL legends Chad Johnson and Shannon Sharpe recently reacted to Manziel’s comments on “Night Cap” and Johnson didn’t hold back.
The former Cincinnati Bengals receiver said, “I would never blame the city. The city’s not an excuse. I’m going to play football Unc. I’ve been to Cleveland before. Hell, I love Cleveland. There are things that I like to do when I go to a city like that. If I’m just coming from Texas A&M.
“I love me some Johnny Manziel based on what he did in college,” Johnson said while flashing the money sign Manziel made famous. He continued, “I don’t want to go to a big city…I want to go to a city where it’s not as fast as being in Miami. I want to go to a city where I can focus on what it is I need to do.”
Sharpe followed up by critcizing Manziel’s work-ethic in the NFL, saying that it wasn’t the city of Cleveland but Manziel’s lack of preparation that led to his short career.
Manziel threw for 1,675 yards, seven touchdowns and seven interceptions in 14 career games. It was a hard fall for the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner, and his football career never fully recovered.
He returned to football in 2018 with the CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Manziel eventually played for the Montreal Alouettes later that year, along with the Alliance of American Football’s Memphis Express in 2019.
Manziel has become a story of what not to do once a prospect makes it to the NFL. Bringing up old wounds won’t get Manziel any sympathy in Cleveland, but he doesn’t appear to be looking for any 10 years after the fact.
