Despite a horrendous performance against the Cincinnati Bengals, Johnny Manziel has the support of Cleveland Browns head coach Mike Pettine for at least another week. Can the same be said of Manziel’s teammates?
According to Pam Oliver of Fox Sports, some of the Browns players may not have been behind Manziel before last Sunday’s game. During an appearance on CBS’ “We Need to Talk,” Oliver reported that some of Manziel’s teammates refused to acknowledge him during pregame warmups.
“Mike Pettine, when he was debating about Brian Hoyer, he said all the right things about how (the Browns) were winning with him. To make that flip flop to Manziel – I don’t think (Manziel’s) teammates have embraced him just yet,” Oliver said, per Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. “I was watching the introduction line with the pyrotechnics and all of that, and everybody runs through (their teammates). He was the last one to go. Some people kept their hands to themselves (and didn’t acknowledge him).”
As Cabot notes, Manziel was in the middle of the group of players and was not the last to run out. She also reviewed the tape and noticed all of the players slapping Manziel’s hands as he went by. Perhaps Oliver had a bad angle?
It’s interesting to note that previous reports have indicated that Brian Hoyer had the full support of his teammates. While the Browns went 7-6 with Hoyer as their starter, the players had to have realized they were staying in the playoff hunt in spite of him, not because of him.
Manziel was atrocious against Cincinnati, but one of his teammates feels he is so talented that he is a “nightmare” to practice against. How much can the Browns really miss a guy that threw zero touchdowns and seven interceptions over his most recent three starts? It’s not like Hoyer is an elite talent.
Manziel could do himself and his teammates a lot of favors by protecting the ball on Sunday against the Carolina Panthers. That would help put an end to the noise, at least for the time being.
H/T CBS Sports
