INDIANAPOLIS — If there was any doubt the Browns are done with Johnny Manziel, new Cleveland coach Hue Jackson emphatically erased it Wednesday.
Jackson described the troubled quarterback’s off-field behavior as intolerable while seemingly making it clear the Browns will release Manziel next month on the first day of the new league year.
“I knew that question was coming,” Jackson said during a meeting with reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine. “We made a statement two weeks ago about Johnny Manziel, and I’m going to stand by that.
“That behavior will not be tolerated as we move forward,” Jackson added. “Our organization is going to take a stand.”
Manziel’s NFL future isn’t the only thing up in the air in the wake of allegations of domestic violence against his ex-girlfriend in Dallas last month. Dallas police reportedly have enough evidence to bring charges against the former Heisman Trophy winner as soon as this week.
Manziel’s father told the Dallas Morning News this month that he fears for his son’s life after Manziel refused pleas from family and his agent to check himself back into rehab. The agent, Erik Burkhardt, later cut ties with Manziel.
The domestic-violence controversy followed allegations Manziel showed up either drunk or hung over during the practice week leading up to the Browns’ regular-season finale last month.
“We’re not worried about Johnny Manziel the football player, we’re worried about Johnny Manziel the person,” Browns owner Jimmy Haslam told reporters in Cleveland the weekend of the Super Bowl.
Cleveland has to wait for the new league year to begin March 9 to cut Manziel because it won’t have enough room under the salary cap until then. But the team left little doubt about its intentions, with the statement this month that Jackson endorsed Wednesday.
“We’ve been clear about expectations for our players on and off the field,” the Browns said in the Feb. 2 statement. “Johnny’s continual involvement in incidents that run counter to those expectations undermines the hard work of his teammates and the reputation of our organization. His status with our team will be addressed when permitted by league rules.”
The Cowboys were thought to be Manziel’s likely post-Cleveland landing spot, but owner Jerry Jones’ interest reportedly has cooled in the wake of Manziel’s off-field woes.
Another roadblock to Manziel finding a job in the NFL in 2016 is the strong likelihood he will face punishment from the league over the allegations by ex-girlfriend Colleen Crowley.
Manziel still has his defenders, though. Super Bowl MVP Von Miller of the Broncos, a friend because both attended Texas A&M, said he thinks Manziel is on the path to recovery.
“I’m not worried,” Miller told reporters last week. “I feel like Johnny’s taking care of business. He has adversity. Everybody has been here with adversity. I’ve been here with my own personal adversity. The support that I’m giving him is the support that he’s given me in the past.”