If Johnny Manziel has any designs on leaving rehab, showing up at Browns offseason workouts and expecting to be welcomed back as QB1 with open arms, he’s in for a rude awakening.
Left tackle Joe Thomas — the team’s main leader — told ESPN Cleveland he feels Manziel must prove to the locker room his hard-partying days are over.
“I think he’s going to have to prove to the team that football is important and being the man, being the starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns, is important, it is his goal, his single goal in his life,” Thomas said.
“You know, I think he lost probably a lot of trust among the guys on the team last year by the way he handled himself once he became the starter. And I think he had a lot of time to reflect, I’m guessing, after the season was over by the comments he made in the media and by his actions, checking himself into rehab … I think those were really positive steps.
“I’m hoping when we comes back in April we see a new Johnny and everybody’s blown away with his commitment. And I think he’s got the talent, so it’s just a matter of if he commits himself to it, we can have a really good quarterback on our hands.”
The Browns may be skeptical of that based on this recent ESPN report:
The bottom line is that Johnny Manziel’s future with the Browns has been in question. When they were putting together half of a new offensive staff, Manziel’s name barely even came up in conversation.
Manziel, who has been in rehab since just after the Super Bowl, was seen at East Ridge Country Club in Shreveport, La., this weekend, playing the front nine with his father and sister. According to TMZ Sports, Manziel “was in good spirits and extremely friendly,” taking the time to pose for a photo with one of the golf pros. There is an understanding Manziel can occasionally take a break from rehab, according to USA Today.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported Manziel is “likely to be discharged soon, possibly even next week.” That jibes with comments head coach Mike Pettine made at the owners’ meetings in Phoenix two weeks ago, when he said he expects Manziel to participate in offseason workouts, which begin April 20.