After weeks of speculation of either drafting a quarterback or trading the former Heisman winner the Cleveland Browns used their 2 first round selections on...a defensive tackle and a center/guard. Johnny Manziel, the backup quarterback, has been on the hot seat since last season because of his wild partying ways that ended up with him going into rehab for 70 days following the end of the season.
Manziel has already lost his starting job to a one-game winning quarterback last season, Josh McCown (formerly of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers), and had lost the trust of his teammates. But the stint at rehab has seemed to change the minds of both the coaches and the players.
Cleveland.com states Head Coach of the Browns Mike Pettine sang Manziel's praises:
'"We still very much believe in Johnny Manziel. We didn't draft him to sell jerseys or tickets but to be a top-notch quarterback. His career didn't start out the way we wanted. We had to hit the pause button and we have reset. I'm not ready to give up on him."'
The stint at rehab is looking like it has done the trick for Manziel. With the coaches in his corner, his teammates have seemed to view a different side of the quarterback.
The All-Pro lineman who protects his blind side, Joe Thomas, painted a perfect picture for the Dallas News to report
"Last year on a Saturday, you might see a picture of him on Instagram floating in a swan drinking champagne, this year on a Saturday if you came in the building, you'd see him studying his playbook and watching film with his coach. It's pretty apparent he's realized how important football is to him."
With the regained admiration of both his coaches and teammates will Manziel become the starting quarterback again for the Cleveland Browns, or will he turn back into the partying Johnny Football? Tell us what you think.
