JOHNNY FOOTBALL TO RETURN?
Canadian League clears Johnny Manziel to sign a contract to play football again
Dec 29, 2017, 10:14 am
No. 2 might get a second chance North of the border. Jamie Squire/Getty Images
Should we call him Johnny “Canadian” Football?
Former Cleveland Brown and Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel has been cleared by the Canadian Football league to sign a contract, presumably with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
Hamilton now has 10 days to make him an offer or trade his rights. If neither happens after that point, he becomes a free agent.
Manziel -- perhaps the greatest A&M football player ever -- has not seen the field since being released by Cleveland in 2016. He was a 2014 first-round draft pick after two explosive seasons at A&M, including a year where he won the Heisman.
But like a lot of great college players, things fell apart when he reached the pros. His work ethic was questionable, and off-the-field incidents with alcohol, drugs and domestic violence helped end his career quickly.
The CFL basically had to do a months-long investigation into Manziel before clearing him to be offered a contract. They have attached conditions to his eligibility. Here is the statement the league released:
“Since last summer, the Canadian Football League has been engaged in a thorough process to determine the eligibility of Johnny Manziel. This process has been conducted with the cooperation of Mr. Manziel and independent of the team which currently holds his CFL rights, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
It has included an ongoing assessment by an independent expert on the issue of violence against women, a review by legal counsel, and an in-person interview of Mr. Manziel conducted by the Commissioner. As well, Mr. Manziel has been required to meet a number of conditions set by the league.
As a result of this process, the Commissioner has now informed Mr. Manziel and the Tiger-Cats he is prepared to approve a contract for Mr. Manziel should one be negotiated.
The process that led to this decision does, however, continue. Mr. Manziel has been informed he must continue to meet a number of conditions in order to remain eligible. These conditions, while extensive and exacting, remain confidential.
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats have 10 days to make an offer to Johnny Manziel in order to keep his rights or to trade his rights to another team. If Manziel does not receive an offer from the Tiger-Cats or isn’t traded by January 7th, 2018, he will become a free-agent."
I watch a lot of CFL football and really enjoy the league, but it is a different game. The field is wider, the end zone is 25 yards deep, wide receivers get a running start and there are only three downs. The game puts a premium on a quarterback with a strong arm and mobility, and unlike the NFL size is not a huge factor. All of that should play to Manziel’s strengths.
If Ti-Cats head coach June Jones -- the former SMU and Hawaii coach (and Oilers assistant back in the day) -- is to be believed, Manziel will be offered a deal in Hamilton.
"I think he'd be the best player to ever play up here," Jones said. "He can throw it and he can run it like nobody ever has been able to do."
Manziel very well could be a star in the league. The quality of play is a lot better than people realize -- every roster is littered with former NFL players -- and it is not as simple as walking on a field and doing what he did at A&M.
If Manziel puts in the work, he could revitalize his career. Doug Flutie used the league to get back to the NFL, but he was an outlier. More former college stars fail in Canada than succeed. (Most recently, Vince Young tried it). But Manziel is still young enough and presumably talented enough to get things jumpstarted.
The big question is will he straighten his life out enough to be a success on the field? The skill is certainly not in question. If he focuses on improving his game and keeping his nose clean off the field, he can be an impact player. Jones’ overhyping aside, he definitely can have success. But only if he avoids the massive train wrecks that have followed him throughout his career and deals with the inevitable adversity.
Manziel was amazing to watch in college, and he could be for Hamilton, too. If he plays well, it will help him get back on track and raise the profile of the CFL in the States. If not? The Ti-Cats, who were terrible last season, lose nothing.
No matter how it plays out, it should be fun to watch. As it has been throughout his career, either Manziel will be a star or the victim of yet another massive train wreck.
The Houston Texans addressed their most glaring needs by selecting offensive tackle Aireontae Ersery and a pair of Iowa State receivers in the NFL draft.
“The idea was to try to add good players, good people that are young, tough, hungry, that want to win, that put the team first,” general manager Nick Caserio said. “These picks exemplify that.”
The Texans got players that could help them quickly despite not picking in the first round for a second straight season. They didn’t have a first-round pick last year because of trades, including the one to move up and get defensive end Will Anderson with the third overall pick in the 2023 draft.
This season they shipped the 25th overall pick to the Giants on Thursday in exchange for several picks.
Their first selection in this draft was receiver Jayden Higgins, who was taken with the second pick of the second round. They added Ersery later in the second round with the 48th overall selection and picked up Higgins’ teammate Jaylin Noel in the third round.
Ersery could be Houston’s left tackle of the future after the offseason trade of five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil. Ersery started 38 games at left tackle over three seasons at Minnesota where he was a third-team All-American last season.
He comes to Houston to help shore up a line that allowed C.J. Stroud to be sacked 52 times last season, which was the second most in the NFL.
The Texans added veteran tackle Cam Robinson this offseason and Ersery will compete with him to protect Stroud’s blind side as the Texans attempt to reach the playoffs for a third straight season under coach DeMeco Ryans.
The 6-foot-6, 331-pound Ersery, who was the Big Ten’s Offensive Lineman of the Year last season, can’t wait to play with Stroud.
“C.J. Stroud is a baller,” Ersery said. “I’m so honored to be a guy to help out and come in and help protect him. I’m just super stoked and I know I’m going to a great organization.”
Cyclones teammates
Higgins and Noel join the Texans to add more depth at receiver to complement star Nico Collins with Tank Dell recovering from a serious knee injury and Stefon Diggs gone to the Patriots.
Higgins, who has been compared to Collins, had 87 receptions for 1,183 yards and nine touchdowns last season for the Cyclones and Noel added 80 catches for 1,194 yards and eight scores.
After Higgins was drafted, Noel never imagined he’d be heading to Houston, too. He shared on social media a fortune he received from a Chinese restaurant that read: “Look forward to an unplanned reunion with an out-of-touch friend.”
Noel later shared his feelings about joining Higgins on the roster.
“I was surprised,” Noel said. “But they’ve seen that 1-2 punch all year. They’re going to be very happy with those selections for sure.”
Caserio said a talk with Iowa State coach Matt Campbell on Friday helped him make his final decisions on the receivers.
“He was effusive in his… belief and praise of both Higgins and Noel,” Caserio said.
The Texans now have three receivers from Iowa State on their roster after drafting Xavier Hutchinson in the sixth round in 2023.
Overcoming obstacles
Ersery and his four siblings were raised by a single mother and experienced homelessness when he was a child despite her working multiple jobs. He is thrilled to have put those struggles behind him as he embarks on his next chapter.
“I’ve got that hardworking mentality from her,” he said. “So, growing up times were tough but now I’ve got my foot in the door and I look forward to trying to change some things around.”
Caserio loves guys with work ethic like Ersery’s and said that’s one reason why they believe he’ll fit in with the Texans.
“If you come in and put your head down and work and just get better, take advantage of your opportunities, you’re going to have a shot to have success and do a lot of good things for the organization,” he said.
What’s in a name?
Along with Noel, the Texans added another Jaylin in this draft with they picked USC cornerback Jaylin Smith in the third round.
“We got Jaylins, and we got all these guys around. It’s going to be hard to keep them straight,” Caserio joked on Friday after they picked Smith.
Then on Saturday, the Texans added another player with the same name, albeit with a different spelling, when they took Penn State safety Jaylen Reed in the sixth round.
That gives them four players with the same name and three different spellings as the three rookies join starting safety Jalen Pitre on the team.
Doubling up
Along with drafting two players from Iowa State, the Texans also added a pair of players from Southern California when they picked running back Woody Marks in the fourth round after drafting Smith in the third.
Marks ran for a career-high 1,133 yards with nine touchdowns for the Trojans last season after transferring from Mississippi State.
Be sure to watch the video below as NFL.com Draft Analyst Lance Zierlein shares his thoughts on all the Texans' picks!