Sierra Foothills Posted May 8 Posted May 8 (edited) Manziel's trajectory since being drafted in the 1st round of the NFL draft in 2014 is a very sad one. To recount (from Wiki): On August 22, 2014, Manziel was fined $12,000 by the NFL for a hand gesture (flipping the bird) that he made in a preseason loss to the Washington Redskins. Manziel was ruled out for the Browns' 2014 regular season finale against the Baltimore Ravens. Manziel's work ethic and commitment were questioned by over 20 sources within the Browns. An anonymous player even called Manziel's rookie season a "100 percent joke." On February 4, 2015, Manziel entered a treatment program for unspecified reasons. On May 30, Manziel was involved in an incident with a heckler at the AT&T Byron Nelson golf tournament. The heckler had been continually asking for an autograph, to the point that Manziel became fed up and threw a water bottle at the man. The water bottle missed the heckler. Security and police were called, but no criminal charges were filed. In October 2015, Manziel was pulled over by a policeman after fighting in his car with his then-girlfriend, Colleen Crowley. Although no charges were made, Manziel admitted to having had some alcoholic drinks earlier that afternoon. Manziel was announced as the starting quarterback for the rest of the 2015 season on November 17, however, he was demoted to third-string quarterback behind McCown and Austin Davis after videos surfaced of him partying in Texas over the bye week. Manziel sat out the last game of the 2015 season with a concussion with reports circulating that he was in Las Vegas instead of in Cleveland with the team that weekend. The team confirmed that Manziel missed a scheduled check-in on the morning of the last game of the season. Sports Illustrated's Peter King also added that the Browns are "so done with Manziel" and that he "wants to go to Dallas." On January 6, 2016, Manziel's marketing agency, LRMR, announced that it would no longer work with Manziel. On February 5, 2016, the Dallas Police Department announced that they were opening a criminal investigation with a claim of domestic violence involving his ex-girlfriend, Colleen Crowley. Dallas police had originally closed the case, but re-opened it with allegations stemming from an altercation on January 30, 2016, at a downtown Dallas hotel. According to Crowley, Manziel forced her into a car, pulled her by the hair, and threatened to kill both her and himself. On February 5, Manziel's agent, Erik Burkhardt, announced that he would no longer represent Manziel. In early February 2016, NFL Network's Ian Rappaport and ESPN's Pat McManamon reported that the Browns planned to cut ties with Manziel as soon as the league's fiscal 2016 began. The Browns released a statement saying that Manziel's continued disregard of their "expectations for our players on and off the field" had undermined the Browns' reputation, and that they intended to address his status "as soon as permitted by league rules". Manziel was released by the Browns on March 11, 2016. On April 19, 2016, after just two months of representing him, agent Drew Rosenhaus terminated Manziel as a client, marking the first time in Rosenhaus' 27-year career he terminated his relationship with an NFL player. On the same day, Nike ended its sponsorship with Manziel. On April 24, Manziel was indicted by a Dallas grand jury on misdemeanor assault charges for the January 30, 2016, incident. On June 24, 2016, Manziel's attorney, Bob Hinton, accidentally sent a lengthy text message to the AP relating to Manziel's defense in his domestic violence case. In the message, Hinton expressed concerns about Manziel's ability to stay clean, saying that he was given a receipt that suggests Manziel spent around $1,000 at The Gas Pipe, a drug paraphernalia store. On June 30, 2016, he was suspended for the first four games of the 2016 season for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. On September 5, Manziel returned to his alma mater to take classes. After a year out of football, Manziel had a workout in Buffalo, New York, with the Tiger-Cats, during which he was "put through a series of physical and medical tests" from August 23 to 24, 2017. He did not initially sign with the team. On September 2, Manziel's representatives requested a contract offer from the Tiger-Cats. According to CFL rules, the Tiger-Cats then had 10 days to offer Manziel a contract, trade his rights or relinquish his rights...However, the CFL later extended the 10-day window so that the league could "facilitate a process of evaluation for the player". Manziel also had a meeting with CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie in September. On September 27, the CFL announced that Manziel would not be allowed to sign with any CFL team for the 2017 season but would be able to sign with a team for the 2018 season if he met "certain conditions". In December 2017 Manziel was approved to play in the CFL. He was offered a contract by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats but his returned agent Erik Burkhardt asked that they offer his client a "fair deal" and that failure to do so would result in Manziel turning his attention to "several other professional options". Burkhardt insisted that Manziel be paid in the same realm as Tiger-Cats' quarterback Zach Collaros was the previous season; i.e., in the range of $500,000 to $550,000. Subsequently the Tiger-Cats released a statement on February 14 implying they had broken off negotiations with Manziel. The same day, Manziel agreed to play in The Spring League, a non-paying developmental league, for the 2018 season. On May 19, 2018, Manziel and the Tiger-Cats announced that they had agreed to a two-year contract. On July 22, 2018 after spending the first six weeks on Hamilton's bench without playing, as backup to Jeremiah Masoli, the Tiger-Cats traded Manziel and offensive linemen Tony Washington and Landon Rice to the Montreal Alouettes for defensive lineman Jamaal Westerman, wide receiver Chris Williams, and Montreal's 2020 and 2021 first-round draft picks. Entering the 2019 season Manziel was slated to compete with Pipkin and Vernon Adams for the starting role but on February 27 it was revealed that the Alouettes released him on orders from the CFL after league officials determined that he had "contravened" the terms of his CFL contract. The CFL also barred him from signing with any other CFL team. Manziel had previously revealed that as part of his agreement with the league, he was required to see a doctor, attend weekly sessions with a therapist, and submit to weekly lithium tests. According to veteran CFL journalist Justin Dunk, the league decided to cut ties with Manziel after he missed a number of mandatory meetings. On March 16, 2019, Manziel signed an agreement to join the Alliance of American Football. Under the league's regional allocation process, the San Antonio Commanders had the first opportunity to sign him via his Texas A&M connections, but the Commanders elected to waive his rights. As a result, he was assigned to the 1–5 Memphis Express through the waiver system, as the Express needed a quarterback to replace the injured Zach Mettenberger and the struggling Christian Hackenberg. Manziel made his debut against the Birmingham Iron on March 24, playing three drives in the second and third quarters as a backup to Brandon Silvers. He completed three of five passes for 48 yards, along with running for 20 yards as the Express won 31–25. The next week, in a March 30 game against the Orlando Apollos, Manziel was removed from the game due to a concussion suffered while attempting to make a tackle after throwing an interception.Three days later, the AAF suspended football operations, ending the 2019 season. When asked by TMZ in September 2020 about potentially playing in the XFL, Manziel announced his retirement, stating: "I think football is a little bit behind me ... Football for me is not at the forefront of my mind." He did not completely rule out coming out of retirement, praising incoming co-owner Dwayne Johnson and stating "Listen, anything 'The Rock' touches is gonna be gold as always." On December 30, 2020, Manziel signed with Fan Controlled Football (FCF), an indoor American football league. He was assigned to the Zappers, a team co-owned by his friend Bob Menery. In a February 2021 USA Today interview, Manziel stated he joined the league out of boredom, and expressed disinterest in playing any more professional football in the future. Manziel played sparingly for the Zappers and missed the week 3 game due to a dental emergency. He was pulled from the semifinal playoff matchup (a game that featured him reuniting with former Browns teammate Josh Gordon) for poor performance. On March 25, 2022, Manziel announced he would return to FCF for a second season, noting that he will serve as a player-coach for the 2022 season and that the FCF did not pressure him to be the face of the league. Since his playing career has ended, Manziel has stated that he's been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. He's also had numerous concussions from football to go along with his well-documented problems with drugs. Now he's signed up for a celebrity boxing match against a "social media star", Bob Menery in Las Vegas. The fight's being promoted by Brand Risk, the company which promoted fights involving Le'Veon Bell and others. Said his father of him to ESPN in 2016, "He's a druggie. It's not a secret that he's a druggie. Hopefully, he doesn't die before he comes to his senses. I mean, I hate to say it, but I hope he goes to jail. I mean, that would be the best place for him. I'm doing my job, and I'm going to move on. If I have to bury him, I'll bury him." I'm a believer in personal responsibility but I also know firsthand that success is often dependent on the love, support, encouragement, and help you receive from others. I read stories like this and it makes me wonder about him but also those around him. I also realize that some people simply can't be helped. I wonder if recovery and redemption are even remotely possible. 5/24/26 UPDATE: To put the last shovel full of dirt on it... https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/johnny-manziel-beats-bob-menery-in-battle-of-dad-bods "Former Heisman winner and Browns first-rounder Johnny Manziel made his MMA debut on Saturday, against an influencer named Bob Menery. Manziel won easily. Anyone who spent two minutes and sixteen seconds of their lives watching the fight lost. It was, quite frankly, a Battle of Dad Bods. Two guys with limited skills in a fight that looked like something that broke out at the back end of a barbecue where both had consumed too much brisket and too much beer. Manziel, a former pro athlete who outweighed Menery by (as Menery claimed after the fight) 30 pounds, seemed to stun Menery early with multiple kicks (including one that almost connected to Menery’s face) before taking Menery down and never letting him get up. Manziel eventually wailed away with blows to the head. At one point, Manziel seemed to be on the verge of deploying the time-honored “stop hitting yourself” technique. Eventually, the referee stepped in and stopped the madness. “I need a cigarette,” Manziel said after the fight. After watching it, I need a Manhattan. Manziel said his first MMA fight was likely his last one. That’s the best news of all." Edited May 25 by Sierra Foothills 1 Quote
BurpleBull Posted May 8 Posted May 8 So who is he fighting??? I know it’s somewhere in that life story. 1 6 4 Quote
Fleezoid Posted May 8 Posted May 8 3 minutes ago, TheyCallMeAndy said: I can't believe his father said that 😬 2 1 Quote
Dr Krentist Posted May 8 Posted May 8 11 minutes ago, TheyCallMeAndy said: I can't believe his father said that 😬 It's tough to know how much his dad has tried. Maybe he's tried for years and years and hasn't been successful and has finally "gave up". Like the saying goes, "You can't help those that don't help themselves/don't want help". 1 Quote
WotAGuy Posted May 8 Posted May 8 59 minutes ago, BurpleBull said: So who is he fighting??? I know it’s somewhere in that life story. Sounds like he and his buddy are trying to pull the wool over and cash in. This is from the OP: “He was assigned to the Zappers, a team co-owned by his friend Bob Menery. Now he's signed up for a celebrity boxing match against a "social media star", Bob Menery in Las Vegas.” 1 1 Quote
davefan66 Posted May 8 Posted May 8 Completely forgot he was in the CFL. It is sad when someone has opportunities as he had, and throws them away. I don’t believe he was ever a NFL QB - first or second string, or practice squad. Still sad to see another human implode like he did. Wonder if this his a true fight or a “made for” event. 1 Quote
RobbRiddick Posted May 8 Posted May 8 He should fight Deshaun Watson. Battle of the Browns Busts (and watson is sure to turn up if he thinks it involves busts). Watson could walk to the ring wearing a tiny towel around his waist. 1 3 1 Quote
PetermansRedemption Posted May 8 Posted May 8 Immediately thought he was about to get demolished by Jake Paul. Then I read he’s fighting his friend? What a joke, just like Manziel’s football career. Quote
Buffalo716 Posted May 8 Posted May 8 Johnny manziel has the craziest stories from A&M Despite him being a knucklehead and his non NFL success his college run for a couple years was ridiculous What he was doing in the SEC was crazy... The controlled chaos was magic I hope he gets his demons fully under control 2 Quote
dreadlox Posted May 9 Posted May 9 3 hours ago, Dr Krentist said: It's tough to know how much his dad has tried. Maybe he's tried for years and years and hasn't been successful and has finally "gave up". Like the saying goes, "You can't help those that don't help themselves/don't want help". Love your children unconditionally. I don’t say that with any judgement of anyone whatsoever. It’s simply the best advice I can, as a parent offer to another parent. 1 Quote
BuffaloBillyG Posted May 9 Posted May 9 5 hours ago, RobbRiddick said: He should fight Deshaun Watson. Battle of the Browns Busts (and watson is sure to turn up if he thinks it involves busts). Watson could walk to the ring wearing a tiny towel around his waist. If they had a fight that involve Browns QB busts, no way would it be a one on one boxing match. Would have to be a battle royal. 4 Quote
Sierra Foothills Posted May 9 Author Posted May 9 2 hours ago, dreadlox said: Love your children unconditionally. I don’t say that with any judgement of anyone whatsoever. It’s simply the best advice I can, as a parent offer to another parent. Doing so guarantees nothing... except that the door to redemption is left open. 2 Quote
MJS Posted May 9 Posted May 9 I now know everything about Johnny Manziel. I was not expecting such a thorough lesson. I'm not sure what I will now do with this knowledge. 1 Quote
chris heff Posted May 9 Posted May 9 “He's also had numerous concussions from football”. So fighting and getting punched in the head seems like a good idea. 2 1 Quote
MJS Posted May 9 Posted May 9 3 hours ago, chris heff said: “He's also had numerous concussions from football”. So fighting and getting punched in the head seems like a good idea. Well, he's already used to it. Quote
Chicken Boo Posted May 9 Posted May 9 23 hours ago, TheyCallMeAndy said: I can't believe his father said that 😬 I can. Coddling a guy like Manziel definitely doesn't help. 1 Quote
Augie Posted May 9 Posted May 9 On 5/8/2026 at 4:08 PM, BurpleBull said: So who is he fighting??? I know it’s somewhere in that life story. You busy? Quote
Spiderweb Posted May 9 Posted May 9 21 hours ago, dreadlox said: Love your children unconditionally. I don’t say that with any judgement of anyone whatsoever. It’s simply the best advice I can, as a parent offer to another parent. Does loving them also mean ignoring the truth? I don't think it does. 2 Quote
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