Jon Gruden wanted the Oakland Raiders to select Johnny Manziel in the NFL Draft before the Cleveland Browns traded up for him.
The start of Johnny Manziel’s NFL career has been a bit of a disappointment, but the Cleveland Browns are playing fairly well under Brian Hoyer. Jon Gruden was very high on Manziel throughout the draft process, and he implored the Raiders to draft the former Texas A&M quarterback. Obviously that didn’t happen, and the Raiders are currently working with rookie quarterback Derek Carr.
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Manziel simply hasn’t shown maturity or the ability to play at the NFL level yet, and it’s a good thing that the Raiders didn’t decide to draft him. The immaturity would be a concern as well living out in California, and the Raiders don’t have a great track record with players that have attitude. It’s possible that he would have flourished immediately out in Oakland, but more than likely it would have been a mistake.
Gruden usually has a fairly good eye when it comes to potential in quarterbacks, so maybe he will be the one that comes out of this situation being right.
Carr has shown quite a bit of talent already this season with the Raiders, and they seem to be very happy with him. It’s always intriguing to think about what would have happened if Manziel was starting for the Raiders, but it’s likely a good thing that it’s not happening.
It will be intriguing to see when Manziel does get his first shot at playing for the Browns, but it might not be this season. Carr on the other hand will continue gaining experience and has quite a bit of potential himself. Gruden would consider the Raiders’ coaching job if they offered it to him, but he definitely believes that the future is very bright for Manziel.
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