BEREA: It’s natural for outsiders to assume Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel would be rooting for Mike Pettine to be fired because the coach disciplined the former Heisman Trophy winner earlier this season by demoting him.
But Manziel insists that’s not the case.
Instead, he’s among the Browns players who have publicly called for continuity as this dismal season winds down. Left tackle Joe Thomas, tight end Gary Barnidge, strong safety Donte Whitner and wide receiver Travis Benjamin are the others.
Manziel’s support is especially noteworthy, though, because of what transpired last month. After Manziel partied during a bye-week break and later lied to the Browns about it, Pettine sent him to the bench for two games.
“I have a ton of respect for [Pettine],” Manziel said Wednesday after practice. “Whether I liked the situation or not and liked the outcome of what happened, I had a part in that, too, and I had to take responsibility and own up to that. It was on nobody else but me. It wasn’t coach Pettine’s fault that I did what I did. It was just on my end taking responsibility, and there’s no grudges, there’s no hate or anything like that. He’s our head coach and our leader, and I definitely have respect for him and that’s not going to change no matter what.”
Manziel reiterated he would be in favor of owner Jimmy Haslam keeping the coaching staff intact beyond this season. He made a similar statement Sunday after the Browns fell 30-13 to the Seattle Seahawks.
“I think it’s a luxury,” said Manziel, who has played for two offensive coordinators — Kyle Shanahan last year and John DeFilippo this year — since the Browns drafted him 22nd overall. “Having the same system and coming into the offseason and being able to focus on what the defense is doing instead of focusing on what you’re trying to do and get guys lined up is a world of difference. So having that familiarity and that continuity would definitely be nice, but that’s way, way above my pay grade for sure.”
Pettine appreciates players publicly calling for him to be retained, but he also knows the endorsements aren’t guaranteed to save his job beyond this season because the Browns (3-11) are tied for the worst record in the NFL with two remaining. They’ll face the Kansas City Chiefs (9-5) on the road Sunday, followed by the Pittsburgh Steelers (9-5) at home Jan. 3. Considering how the season has unfolded, it shouldn’t come as a surprise if Haslam ousts Pettine and General Manager Ray Farmer after the season.
“It’s good to hear [support from players because] as a coaching staff, you hope you’re running a program that the players enjoy being in and they respect the men that they work for, and when you hear comments like that, it reinforces that,” said Pettine, who shook Haslam’s hand and hugged him Wednesday on the practice field. “But at the same time, we all know — I’ve said it a million times — this is a bottom-line business. It’s pass or fail, and unfortunately we’ve failed more than we’ve passed, and we also feel that we’ve planted some seeds for growth here.
“But as I stress to the players all the time, control the controllables. And for us as a coaching staff, we’re going to prepare like heck to get our team ready for Kansas City and next week for Pittsburgh, and we’re going to coach our butts off and hopefully we can get our guys [to do] the same — preparing hard, practicing hard. And as I said before, whatever happens, happens. ... It’s good to hear [players backing the coaching staff], but [we’re] still pressing forward for two more weeks.”
Even Chiefs coach Andy Reid vouched for Pettine during a conference call.
“Mike Pettine is a good football coach,” Reid said. “We run the same basic defense that they’re running there. I’ve gone against him when he was with the [New York] Jets, and I coached in Philadelphia while he was still a high school coach there. I know the stock that he comes from, know people that have worked with him and I’ve coached against him. He’s a good football coach.”
Still, Manziel advocating for the coaching staff sticks out the most.
“It just reinforces what I’ve said all along from a personal standpoint: he and I get along very well,” Pettine said. “If you just eliminate that incident where I felt like I was doing my job and doing what was best for the team and doing what was best for him and hopefully he respects that. But I also know that from an interaction standpoint, when he’s here, I have a ton of respect for him because of A, what he’s gone through personally and B, how he has earned the respect of the guys around him.
“We all know what he did, but at the same time, when you hear the other players come out and support [him] because they see it, they see him ultra-prepared, they see him seamlessly calling plays in the huddle and getting guys lined up and knowing where to go with the ball and doing his job, that there’s no substitute for hard work to get to that point, and he’s put it in. He’s done it. So from a coaching staff standpoint, the football trust is there. We all know about the hiccup, but the football trust is there, so it’s not surprising.”
Manziel’s relationship with DeFilippo and quarterbacks coach Kevin O’Connell is positive, too.
“I think Flip has done a really good job obviously being our leader on the offensive side,” Manziel said. “I think Kev has brought a really good dynamic to our room. ... Just having the collective wisdom that we have in [the quarterback room] has been nice. It’s definitely helped me elevate my knowledge of the game for sure.”
Manziel went 0-2 as a starter during a miserable rookie season. He completed 51.4 percent of his passes with zero touchdowns, two interceptions and a rating of 42.
This year, he’s 2-3 as a starter. He has completed 60.7 percent of his passes with seven touchdowns, four interceptions and a rating of 85.9.
Manziel, 23, realizes continuity is valuable because it gives players time to master a coach’s system. If the Browns stick with him beyond this season, he’d likely benefit from stability on the coaching staff.
“I definitely think it takes a couple [years],” Manziel said. “I don’t think there’s a specific formula to it, but I know the more games you play, the more times you go through a walk through and having two years of that and an offseason ... does make a lot of difference.”
Especially for a young quarterback like Manziel.
“That’s a tough position to play even without switching systems, right? You add those hurdles in there, and that can be a bit tough to do,” Reid said. “But he’s a talented kid, and whatever happens, happens. That’s how it rolls. You have to deal with. It’s not an easy position to play, and it’s tough to be in a lot of different situations like that.”
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Browns blog at www.ohio.com/browns. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NateUlrichABJ and on Facebook www.facebook.com/abj.sports.