“The Cleveland Browns have waived QB Johnny Manziel.
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The team finally cut ties on Friday with the 2012 Heisman Trophy victor after two disappointing seasons. The Browns included his pedestrian statistics but not any comment. He made eight starts and appeared in 15 games over two seasons, tallying seven touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Though it’s safe to say that Goodell isn’t taking advice from Evans regarding matters of employee discipline (then again, based on the league’s misadventures in court the past few years, maybe he is), it’s a bad look for any employee of the NFL to be advocating behavior that would be a violation of federal law.
Manziel completed only 10 of his 19 attempts for 80 yards, was sacked three times for 26 lost yards, intercepted twice and rushed for 13 yards on five carries in the Browns’ 30-0 loss to the Bengals in front of more than 67,000 fans expecting to see a struggling offense pick things up and remain relevant in the playoff race.
The quarterback was accused by his girlfriend of hitting her at a hotel in Dallas, then forcing her to get into a vehicle with him. He was cleared by the league in October after a similar incident with Crowley.
It all began with such promise.
The Browns announced via the team’s website Friday that the 23-year-old had been waived. Although other teams passed on him, the Browns, with the approval of owner Jimmy Haslam, traded two picks to move up and take him with the No. 22 pick, a selection they would later regret. But Cleveland’s high hopes for “Johnny Football” were short-lived.
Adding Manziel to your roster comes with a risk. In January, he entered a treatment centre for an unspecified addiction.
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The Browns stood by Manziel. Now, he will go down as one of the many draft-day blunders for the Browns since their return in 1999.
