Johnny Football was lacking on Sunday. Johnny Manziel got his first start of the season on Sunday and things certainly did not go as planned. Excitement surrounded the Cleveland Browns as the rookie quarterback was set to make his debut for the team while many hoped his dynamic abilities displayed at Texas A&M would carry over in Cleveland. However, the result was a shutout and now the focus returns to Brian Hoyer.
Manziel looked every bit the rookie in the 30-0 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. The quarterback finished the day going 10 for 18 for 80 yards, two interceptions and 13 rushing yards. He was also sacked three times. That is not what head coach Mike Pettine had in mind when he said that Manziel was starting to spark the offense after five weeks of field goals. However, as the playoffs look out of the question for Cleveland, Pettine believes Manziel will start next week.
"He didn't play well. He looked like a rookie, played like a rookie. I know a lot of it was we didn't play well around him, but he made some obvious mistakes that typically a veteran quarterback won't make," Pettine said, via the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
The next two weeks will serve as an audition for Manziel. The Browns have a lot of decisions to make in regards to the quarterback position considering Hoyer's contract is expiring. Cleveland has two first-round draft picks and are trying to figure out the best way to invest in the position for the future. Manziel is making no excuses about the way he played in his debut, but is prepared to improve.
"It's tough to come out there and lay an egg like that and I put a lot of that on me," Manziel said. "I'm not using the rookie excuse - it's not me. Yeah, I'm a rookie but that's out the window. I needed to play better. I felt coming in to today that I was absolutely prepared for today. Being out there, I never felt overwhelmed or that it was too much for me, but when it comes down to it, football is football. You need to make more plays than the other team and we didn't do that."
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Hoyer has no plans to return to Cleveland. He wants to sign with a team that will give him the shot to start immediately. It is clear that right now Cleveland is leaning towards going all-in on Manziel which will likely send Hoyer elsewhere. The veteran was responsible for seven wins this season for the Browns so plenty of teams will be interested.