Cleveland Browns head coach Mike Pettine wasn’t entirely sold on quarterback Johnny Manziel last season, saying he was “50-50” on if he could make it in the NFL.
According to a conversation Cleveland Browns head coach Mike Pettine had with NFL.com’s Albert Breer, Pettine wasn’t entirely sure if Johnny Manziel could cut it a year ago.
Pettine said the following about Manziel: “He’s got some stuff to be cleaned up, but if you’d asked me this a year ago, I would have been like, ‘it’s a great mystery, I have no idea where this guy is gonna be.’ And if I were to handicap it, I’d maybe be at 50-50 with this guy, and that’d be generous.”
Pettine does seem to have more confidence in the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner in 2015. Manziel will start tonight versus the first-place Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday Night Football. This may have more to do with starting quarterback Josh McCown being out because of injury.
Mike Pettine feels that Johnny Manziel realizes that he doesn’t have to turn every play into one belonging on the highlight reel, a ‘punt return’ as Pettine calls it. Pettine likes how Manziel is letting the play develop and his ability to read defenses better in his second season with the team.
The problem lies in that what made Manziel a Heisman Trophy winner in the first place was his ability to thrive when a play would break down with his strong arm and scrambling ability. Surely the Browns don’t want that to completely fall to the wayside, but it makes sense for them to try to harness the talents of their dual-threat quarterback.
Moreover, this isn’t a 50-50 decision tonight for Mike Pettine, as the Cleveland Browns head coach will go with Johnny Manziel against their undefeated arch rival in the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday Night Football. It’s all Johnny Football tonight!