INQUISITR.COM / News & Politics

Johnny Manziel Promises To Be Better In 2015: With No Hype, Will Anyone Care?

By Toni Matthews
Published on: 11:12 PST, Dec 27, 2014

Johnny Manziel had a much-hyped, but ultimately disappointing rookie season. The Cleveland Browns drafted Manziel earlier this year, no doubt thanks to all the excitement and media attention surrounding “Johnny Football.”

College football and the NFL are two different things, as any real sports fan will tell you.

In college you can afford to spend a good amount of your time partying without too many negative consequences on the college football season.

But as Johnny Manziel found out the hard (and humiliating) way, he was simply not prepared when the time finally came for him to prove himself.

I’d previously written that it wasn’t entirely fair or correct to dump the early end to the Browns’ season on Manziel’s shoulders alone.

After all, it was Pettine that put him in during a crucial part of the team’s season. Johnny Manziel could have made a complete debut in 2015 and the Browns may have gone on to feature in the postseason.

But since that’s not happening for Manziel or Cleveland, the entire franchise has been forced to look ahead to what they can change next football season that won’t continue the decades-long pattern of disappointment.

Manziel insists that he has been humbled, and that he has learned things that will make him a better quarterback next year. “I’m not the guy that I’ve always been,” said Johnny Manziel. “I’m not the Johnny Manziel that came in here a year ago. It’s been a year of growing up for me.”

It will all come down to how Johnny “Football” Manziel spends his off-season. His partying ways did little to endear him to league professionals, or dedicated football fans.

If we see more of the same, then this will be taken as an empty promise. However, if it becomes clear that Johnny Manziel is spending his time improving his understanding of NFL and gameplay, perhaps more people will be willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Now it’s just a matter of whether or not anyone will really care about Johnny Football next season. We are due a new wave of promising talents in 2015.

Moreover, not every rookie had as disappointing a season as Manziel.

Just look at Dallas Cowboys rookie Zack Martin. This is his first year as well, and he has been invited to play in the Pro Bowl.

It could be that the window of time for Manziel to make anything remotely resembling a lasting impression is closing swifter than the young man appreciates.

This isn’t aided by the fact that he’s playing for the Cleveland Browns, hardly a franchise of note in the modern football era.

If Manziel doesn’t manage to have a brilliant start next year, it’s doubtful anyone will care about “Johnny Football” beyond the early stages of next season.

[Image Credit: abjbrowns]

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