Cleveland Browns: Expectations for Johnny Manziel

According to an NFL.com report from Kevin Patra, Johnny Manziel is back at the Cleveland Browns’ training facility after receiving treatment for alcohol rehabilitation. The second-year quarterback looks to have made strides to repair his image and is now participating in the Browns’ voluntary conditioning program.

With his personal life seemingly back in order, Manziel now looks to rebound from a lackluster rookie season in which he compiled a dreadful 41.9 quarterback rating in limited action. Moving forward, what can Browns fans expect from the club’s second first-round draft pick in 2014?

I went back and reviewed Manziel’s rookie performances against Buffalo, Cincinnati, and Carolina. These were the only games that Manziel received extensive playing time in. The first thing I noticed in reviewing Manziel’s brief appearances last season was the fact that Cleveland’s offense was obviously not a good fit for Manziel’s style of play.

More from Cleveland Browns

It looked as though the Browns’ offensive system was better suited for a pocket passer like Brian Hoyer who relies on timing routes and quick passes. A scrambling quarterback like Manziel is more adept at going off the script and improvising on the fly. With new offensive coordinator John DeFilippo at the helm this year, I anticipate the Browns’ offense will do a better job of catering to Manziel’s unique skill set. Let’s be honest, there’s no way the Browns will be building their offense around 35-year old journeyman passer Josh McCown.

In addition to not playing in the correct offensive system, I also saw a trend of Cleveland drastically condensing their playbook for Manziel by using only two- or three-man routes. That tells me that head coach Mike Pettine and former offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan may not have believed in Manziel’s ability to consistently read through multiple progressions. While reviewing Manziel’s small body of work last season, I can surmise that those fears were justified for the most part.

Dec 21, 2014; Charlotte, NC, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel (2) reacts in the second quarter at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Against the Bills on November 30th, Manziel’s frenetic style of play likely caught the Buffalo defense off-guard. Manziel’s 10-yard touchdown scramble was reminiscent of the “Johnny Football” character that we saw tear up the college football universe. Subbing in for an ineffective Hoyer in the fourth quarter, Manziel had a solid outing against Buffalo with five completions on eight attempts for 63 yards. While Cleveland’s playbook seemed to be fairly vanilla against the Bills, Manziel did a nice job of mixing in quick decisions from the pocket and properly utilizing his mobility.

Versus the Bengals on December 14th, Manziel’s in-game performances consisted of many more bad plays than good. I thought Manziel relied way too much on his mobility in this game and he suffered through an utterly dismal outing. Plenty of bad habits plagued Manziel throughout the game; inaccurate and late throws, not recognizing or anticipating open receivers, scrambling despite having clean pockets to throw from, not locating check down opportunities, and not knowing when to abort the play just to name a few. While Manziel threw two interceptions against the Bengals, a third interception was luckily negated due to a defensive penalty.

Dec 14, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel (2) drops back versus the Cincinnati Bengals at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Bengals won 30-0. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Aside from the turnovers, I found one play in this Bengals’ game particularly alarming. On the opening offensive drive of the game, Cleveland faced a third and two situation and ran a designed bubble screen. While the play was set up perfectly, Manziel didn’t even bother to look at the open receiver and instead rushed the football short of the first down marker. Not following the most simple of instructions on such a rudimentary play call and costing his team a possession is certainly not a good impression to make on a new team.

I thought Manziel’s showing against the Panthers was a combination of what we saw in the Buffalo and Cincinnati games. Against Carolina, Manziel’s quick decisions from the pocket reminded me of his showing in Buffalo. However, his sloppy footwork and inaccurate throws reminded me of the Cincinnati game. Manziel completed just three of eight passes on December 21st against the Panthers before leaving the game early due to a hamstring injury.

Based on what we saw last year,”Johnny Football” has an awful lot of work to do. To me, it looked as though Manziel simply wasn’t prepared and just decided to wing it when he got in the game. I think Manziel must put more time into his craft and also find a happy medium where he can still make exciting freelance plays but also stay disciplined within the offensive game plan. Hopefully for Browns’ fans, Manziel’s new-found stability within his personal life and a new offensive coordinator can afford him a higher chance of achieving this goal.

Next: Cleveland Browns: Making the case for DeVante Parker

More from NFL Spin Zone

Home/Cleveland Browns