Johnny Manziel's been holed up in rehab for nearly ten weeks now, completely out of sight and out of mind for the Cleveland Browns. So much so, that the team's reportedly "close" to giving up on him just five games and two starts into his NFL career. He completed 13 passes and threw two picks in his starts (both losses)—performances that, coupled with his "well crap, I guess I gotta take this NFL thing more seriously" attitude, have Browns teammates openly speculating on Manziel's future.
A few months after anonymous Browns players ripped Manziel in an ESPN interview, stalwart All-Pro offensive tackle Joe Thomas has added his own evaluation of Johnny Football into the discussion. Speaking to ESPN Cleveland, Thomas brought up Manziel's apparent lackluster commitment to the team and the sport.
“I think he’s going to have to prove to the team that football is important and being the man, being the starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns, is important, it is his goal, his single goal in his life,” said Thomas.
He continued to explain how Manziel lost the trust of his locker room—a huge strike for any young starting quarterback in the league.
“You know, I think he lost probably a lot of trust among the guys on the team last year by the way he handled himself once he became the starter," Thomas said. "And I think he had a lot of time to reflect, I’m guessing, after the season was over by the comments he made in the media and by his actions, checking himself into rehab—I think those were really positive steps."
The Browns signed Josh McCown this offseason, and rumors that Sam Bradford or Macrus Mariotta may be sought after by management around NFL Draft time won't die down. Regardless of who the Browns bring in to compete at quarterback, Manziel has a long road back to earning the trust and confidence of his teammates.
Or, he can keep doing this Johnny Football shtick.
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[via ProFootballTalk]
