Johnny Being Johnny

There is currently one player getting the majority of media attention this preseason. This is Cleveland Browns’ quarterback Johnny Manziel. During his two-year stay at Texas A&M, he made plenty of both positive and negative headlines. However, the present situation is Manziel trying to beat out veteran Brian Hoyer for the starting job. Through two preseason games, neither has showed they truly deserve to get the starting nod week one. After going 7/11 for 63 yards in the first preseason game, Manziel took a large step back against the Washington Redskins on Monday Night Football. His final line was 7/16 for 65 yards and a touchdown. I wouldn’t give him much credit on the TD though, as it was a mere flip to Dion Lewis where Lewis did most of the work. He consistently was throwing behind receivers resulting in multiple incompletions on makeable plays. With this said, Hoyer again did nothing to run away with the job, going just 2/6 for 16 yards.

It was a gesture Manziel threw out in the third quarter that won’t sit well with the coaches. After a play that ended near the Redskins’ bench, Manziel flipped the bird to the Redskins while heading back. Per ESPN, Manziel stated, “I felt like I did a good job of holding my composure throughout the night, and you have a lapse of judgment and slip up.” He’ll likely receive an $11,025 fine for his actions and potentially the chance to start week one. When you play in the NFL and receive the attention Johnny gets, you have to know the cameras are always going to be on during the game. This likely won't sit well with head coach Mike Pettine either, who doesn't seem too fond of the young quarterback. With the chances being limited before the start of the regular season, I expect Brian Hoyer to simply win the job on default of neither taking a handle of it and Hoyer being the more experienced option. Personally, I don’t think the starting QB job of the Browns is a great situation for any quarterback to prove their worth in the NFL due to the slim receiving core, especially if Josh Gordon is suspended for the season as expected.