4/3/2015 10:40:36 AM
Chris Mortensen of ESPN, speaking on “Mike and Mike in the Morning” on April 1, indicated the Browns are ready to give up on Johnny Manziel as a wasted first-round draft after just one season, Jeff Schudel of the News-Herald reports.
“I think about 90 percent that they have moved on (from Manziel) in their own minds except that they really don’t know who they’re going to get when Johnny leaves rehab, which has been an extended stay — a two-month stay,” Mortensen said. “He should be getting out sometime in the first week of April if they’re satisfied that he’s ready to go out and get into society and that whatever deep-rooted problems that he had has been addressed.
“The bottom line is that Johnny Manziel’s future with the Browns has been in question. When they were putting together half of a new offensive staff, Manziel’s name barely even came up in conversation.”
Mortensen’s bold words run contrary to the public stance the Browns are taking on Manziel.
“There’s a reason we drafted (Manziel) where we did,” head coach Mike Pettine told reporters at the NFL league meetings last month in Phoenix. “This is a guy that accounted for 90-plus touchdowns in college (at Texas A&M).
Ray Farmer also said Manziel deserves another chance. The Browns general manager, who moved up four spots in the 2014 draft to take Manziel 22nd overall, expects more from Manziel now that DeFilippo has replaced Kyle Shanahan as offensive coordinator.
“If he’s prepared and he demonstrates the things that he needs to demonstrate, then yeah he should get every opportunity to be the guy,” Farmer said in Phoenix. “Do I believe in his skill set and think that he can do the job? Sure. But I think you have to give guys an opportunity to grow and learn.
“You’ve got to put people in the optimum opportunity to have success. I look at who we were at the beginning of last year — running the football, playing play-action, two backs in the backfield. We didn’t play like that when he played.”
Manziel started the 14th and 15th games of 2014 and lost both. He completed 18 of 35 passes for 175 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions in about seven quarters. He had a 42.0 passer rating.
Chris Mortensen of ESPN, speaking on “Mike and Mike in the Morning” on April 1, indicated the Browns are ready to give up on Johnny Manziel as a wasted first-round draft after just one season, Jeff Schudel of the News-Herald reports.
“I think about 90 percent that they have moved on (from Manziel) in their own minds except that they really don’t know who they’re going to get when Johnny leaves rehab, which has been an extended stay — a two-month stay,” Mortensen said. “He should be getting out sometime in the first week of April if they’re satisfied that he’s ready to go out and get into society and that whatever deep-rooted problems that he had has been addressed.
“The bottom line is that Johnny Manziel’s future with the Browns has been in question. When they were putting together half of a new offensive staff, Manziel’s name barely even came up in conversation.”
Mortensen’s bold words run contrary to the public stance the Browns are taking on Manziel.
“There’s a reason we drafted (Manziel) where we did,” head coach Mike Pettine told reporters at the NFL league meetings last month in Phoenix. “This is a guy that accounted for 90-plus touchdowns in college (at Texas A&M).
Ray Farmer also said Manziel deserves another chance. The Browns general manager, who moved up four spots in the 2014 draft to take Manziel 22nd overall, expects more from Manziel now that DeFilippo has replaced Kyle Shanahan as offensive coordinator.
“If he’s prepared and he demonstrates the things that he needs to demonstrate, then yeah he should get every opportunity to be the guy,” Farmer said in Phoenix. “Do I believe in his skill set and think that he can do the job? Sure. But I think you have to give guys an opportunity to grow and learn.
“You’ve got to put people in the optimum opportunity to have success. I look at who we were at the beginning of last year — running the football, playing play-action, two backs in the backfield. We didn’t play like that when he played.”
Manziel started the 14th and 15th games of 2014 and lost both. He completed 18 of 35 passes for 175 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions in about seven quarters. He had a 42.0 passer rating.
