Browns coach says Johnny Manziel is easier than Tebowmania

It’s not Browns coach Mike Pettine’s first rodeo handling a quarterback over which the media obsesses. Johnny Manizel’s head coach, Pettine also work with Tim Tebow on the Jets.

The press wondered if there was any resemblance of one media circus to the next.

“The circumstances are different,” Pettine said via Cleveland.com. “Tebow was an established NFL player, he wasn’t coming in as a rookie, unproven. It’s a little easier for us with Manziel because he understands he earned Johnny Football as a college player and nobody understands it more than him. It’s like, ‘Listen, I don’t want to be named starter coming out of the draft.’

“People criticize us for referring to him as a backup. That’s what he is. It would have been a disservice to the other 80-some players in the locker room and it would have been a service to him carrying that burden of ‘What have you done to deserve this?’ We all want him to be successful but there is a process that has to occur and he has to go through it.”

These are all similar statements made by Josh McDaniels when he drafted Tim Tebow (No. 25 overall) at a similar position as Johnny Manziel (22nd overall).

Although, no one expected Tebow to start right away. But the distinction Pettine doesn’t mention is where the media’s attention falls. With Manzielmania — if you will — the attention lies mostly off the field, where Manziel has established himself as a playboy.

With Tebow, it was on the field, where he provided incredible drama on a weekly basis. Tebow never got caught in Las Vegas nor did he ever resemble Billy Madison.

Though it’s hard to believe, the Manzielmania will be even more challenging to manage than Tebowmania.