New head of football operations Sashi Brown signaled the end of Johnny Manziel’s tenure with the Browns by issuing a scathing statement Tuesday afternoon in reaction to the latest off-field incident involving the troubled quarterback.
The organization is set to dump Manziel on March 9, and Brown indicated as much in his statement that was triggered by the events of this past weekend.
Police in Fort Worth, Texas, and Dallas are investigating to determine whether an assault occurred when Manziel and his ex-girlfriend engaged in an altercation early Saturday morning. Officers from both police departments said there were no updates as of Tuesday morning.
Even if Manziel isn’t charged with a crime, he could still be disciplined by the NFL. The league is also investigating the matter under its personal conduct policy.
“We’ve been clear about expectations for our players on and off the field,” Brown, the franchise’s executive vice president of football operations who has final say on the 53-man roster, said in the statement. “Johnny’s continual involvement in incidents that run counter to those expectations undermines the hard work of his teammates and the reputation of our organization. His status with our team will be addressed when permitted by league rules. We will have no further comment at this time.”
The phrase “league rules” in Brown’s statement is a reference to the team’s salary-cap situation.
NFL rosters will unfreeze Monday, when the waiver system begins the day after the Super Bowl. However, the Browns won’t cut Manziel until the new league year begins at 4 p.m. March 9 because they don’t yet have the salary-cap room needed to make the move after carrying over their $20 million in cap space to the 2016 league year. Once the new league year arrives, the Browns will be able to absorb the $4.624 million it’ll cost them to waive Manziel, 23, the former Heisman Trophy winner from Texas A&M University.
Trades can’t be made until the new league year begins, but that’s expected to be a moot point in Manziel’s case. His off-field issues will almost certainly preclude another team from giving up anything in exchange for him.
Manziel’s publicist, Denise Michaels, declined to comment when asked about Brown’s statement and the team’s plans to sever ties with her client. Manziel’s agent, Erik Burkhardt, did not respond to an email seeking comment.
Browns coach Hue Jackson expressed disapproval about the most recent incident involving Manziel during a radio interview that aired Tuesday morning on KNR2 (1540-AM).
“My general reaction would be disappointment,” Jackson said. “As I’ve said many times, I would like for the Cleveland Browns players to conduct themselves in a manner that represents the organization well. Obviously, that reflected differently on what we want to have happen. Obviously, it’s a process that we’re going through and we’ll continue to go through it.”
Manziel’s 10-week stay last year in an inpatient rehabilitation facility specializing in alcohol and drug addiction treatment hasn’t eliminated his hard-partying lifestyle, which has been chronicled online for years. Three days before the Browns fired coach Mike Pettine on Jan. 3, he revealed members of the organization wanted Manziel to get his personal problems addressed again this offseason.
When Fort Worth police arrived at an apartment complex at about 2 a.m. Saturday after receiving a phone call about a “possible assault,” Manziel was not there, according to a news release from the department. But officers spoke to his ex-girlfriend, and she expressed concern about Manziel’s “well-being.” So police called him, checked locations on the ground and even searched for him with a helicopter. They later determined he was safe and in no danger.
Of course, Manziel was questioned roadside by Avon police on Oct. 12 after his infamous in-car fight with then-girlfriend Colleen Crowley. Crowley accused Manziel of hitting her, which he denied. Manziel told police the couple had been drinking earlier in the day. No arrests were made, no charges were filed and the NFL did not punish Manziel after investigating the incident for more than a month.
Even before the episode Saturday in Texas, the Browns appeared to be done with Manziel, the 22nd overall pick in the 2014 draft. Shortly after they hired Jackson, he spoke as if the team would move on from Manziel in a series of radio interviews and mentioned the possibility of drafting a quarterback second or 32nd overall in late April.
“I do believe that this team does need a quarterback,” Jackson said on SiriusXM’s Bleacher Report Radio channel. “... I think what we need to do is look to the future and find what we think is going to be the best fit for us and go from there.”
Asked in another interview about Manziel’s future and what type of quarterback he wants, Jackson said on SiriusXM NFL Radio he has a desire for “a guy that can help elevate this football team, not anybody that’s going to tear it down.”
Manziel’s career record as an NFL starter is 2-6. He has completed 147-of-258 passes (57 percent) for 1,675 yards and seven touchdowns with seven interceptions and a rating of 74.4.
Brown made it clear those will be Manziel’s final statistics with the Browns.
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.