Johnny Manziel declared that he wants to get back to football, possibly as a coach. But as with many things in his career, he chose an unusual place to make that declaration.
Via ESPN, Manziel said that if he wasn’t able to get back to the NFL, his goal is to get into coaching.
He made those comments while at the International Football Betting Conference in Costa Rica, which would clearly thrill any potential employer.
“I’d do something involved with sports. I can’t get away from it,” Manziel said. “I’ve had to ask myself that a little bit as of late over the past year, but at the same time I’d want to be involved in sports in some way, whether it’s coaching, whether it’s doing something like that. So I think that’d be my route.”
He said “probably college,” when asked what level, and that’s probably appropriate (since he was moderately successful there). He has coached at some clinics this offseason.
He admitted he was “hard-headed” in college, and that he regretted not taking things as seriously during his college days. Apparently no mention was made of the NFL, which he didn’t seem to take seriously at all.
He added that the CFL was “definitely something I’ve looked into,” but that his goal was to get back to the NFL.
I can see his first coaching manual now :
"How to be a professional douche"
"Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things." George Carlin
Former NFL quarterback Johnny Manziel, the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner, worked out last week for the Canadian Football League team that owns his rights.
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats put Manziel through a series of workouts in Buffalo over two days, but the organization decided not to sign him at the time. The Tiger-Cats plan to retain their rights to Manziel through a roster mechanism known as a "negotiation list," in the event that he becomes a more realistic option.
Vice president of football operations Kent Austin did not close the door on revisiting the idea of signing Manziel later.
Austin told reporters "we're still interested in Johnny Manziel" but added: "We're not interested in signing Johnny right now. That won't happen. That's not imminent. We're not signing Johnny right now."
On the workout, Austin said: "Johnny did some good things. On the field, he looked fine. It was a short workout but obviously he's a talented kid."
If Johnny Manziel was hoping the CFL would be the site of his football comeback, he's got some work to do. According to TSN, a CFL team already rejected his first comeback attempt.
As TSN reported on Wednesday, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats held a workout for Manziel in Buffalo last week. That workout included a physical and medical tests. A source told TSN that Manziel has "too many red flags" for them to pursue him.
As Yahoo Sports noted, the Tiger-Cats briefly hired former Baylor coach Art Briles, who lost his job at Baylor due to numerous assault incidents and allegations that involved members of the football program. That same team concluded that Manziel has too many red flags.
The Ticats were hoping to learn that Manziel, 24, is ready to put his troubled past behind him and dedicate himself to becoming the player he was in college. Most importantly, the team wondered if Manziel could manage becoming the face of a franchise and the attention that would come with a return to the spotlight.
The answer to those questions was a resounding no, according to sources. Among other concerns, the Ticats were not convinced Manziel is in in game shape or that his off-field regiment is consistent with that of someone dedicated to professional football.
"Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things." George Carlin
