Should Cleveland Browns accept Johnny Manziel's apology?

Johnny Manziel apologized the the Cleveland Browns organization and their fans in his first public comments since his release from a stint in rehab.

Johnny Manziel‘s journey from a freshman winning the coveted Heisman Trophy to a potential NFL bust has been highly publicized and scrutinized from Day 1. Manziel earned a reputation during his time at Texas A&M as a party animal, and apparently that did not change one bit when he was drafted by the Cleveland Browns with the No. 22 pick in the NFL Draft last season.

For most young signal callers, becoming a first round pick would be more than enough responsibility to make football their top priority. Even for the wild card know as Johnny Football, with the pinnacle of becoming a franchise quarterback within his grasp, surely he would change his hard-living ways.

Unfortunately that did not occur with the troubled Manziel. He began the season on the bench, losing the starting quarterback battle to veteran Brian Hoyer. Manziel eventually got his shot late in the season, and the end result was nothing short of a disaster.

During an abysmal performance for the ages, the young quarterback went 10-for-18 on his passes, accumulating a total of 80 yards, two interceptions and zero touchdowns. His quarterback rating at the conclusion of the season was a horrendous 42.0.

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Manziel finally hit his low-point at the end of the season, when he was suspended after missing a team meeting. When team officials appeared at his residence, they found their quarterback still drunk from a party he threw the previous night. Manziel was suspended for the final game of the season as a result, and almost immediately checked into a rehab facility to address his “personal issues”.

He deserves credit for taking the initiative upon himself to seek out the help he needs, and hopefully the experience will be a wake up call. Here is Manziel’s first public statement to the media following his recent release from rehab, via USA Today:

"“I take full responsibility for my actions and it’s my intention to work very hard to regain everyone’s trust and respect. I understand that will take time and will only happen through what I do and not what I say. I also understand there’s a lot of curiosity about this but anyone who has a friend or family member that’s been through things like this knows it’s an ongoing process. I’m going to continue to ask folks to try to respect my privacy as I determine to what degree I am comfortable talking about a subject which I consider very personal.”"

Should the Browns organization accept their embattled quarterback’s recent apology?

Absolutely, it would be completely unprofessional not to. However, that does not mean they should count on him being in their long term plans. While it is true that Manziel has shown professionalism in accepting responsibility for his mistakes and vowing to earn back the trust of his teammates, it does not mean he has what it takes to lead an NFL football team. After last season’s debacle, it will be tough to earn back the respect necessary to command the huddle in Cleveland.

Unless Manziel shows drastic improvement in the near future, the Browns would be wise to begin their search for a new quarterback of the future. Do not be surprised one bit if they make some drastic moves in the NFL Draft to move up into the top 10 picks and select Marcus Mariota.

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Should Cleveland Browns accept Johnny Manziel’s apology?

By Josh Criswell | Apr 17, 2015

Johnny Manziel apologized the the Cleveland Browns organization and their fans in his first public comments since his release from a stint in rehab.

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