It wasn’t easy for Johnny Manziel to get sober.
The former Browns quarterback has credited wife Bre Tiesi with keeping him in line, and the model confessed she was as anxious as she was excited for his Canadian comeback in light of his struggles with bipolar disorder and substance abuse.
“You can’t help but be nervous,” Tiesi, 26, told TMZ Sports before Manziel’s CFL debut for the Montreal Alouettes on Friday night. “But I’m really excited. I mean, there’s a lot of things that he went through, and it was such a struggle for a long time. It was just one of those things where it’s like, ‘Are we ever gonna get out of this?’ Like, ‘Are you gonna pull it together? Are you gonna figure out what’s wrong?’ ”
The Heisman winner told “Good Morning America” in February that he self-medicated for his mental illness with alcohol, which he blames for his downward spiral and legal troubles, including domestic violences charges against him from ex-girlfriend Colleen Crowley, but says he’s now a changed (and healthy) man.
“I am taking medication for bipolar, and I am working to try to make sure I don’t fall back into any type of depression, because I know where that leads me and I know how slippery a slope that is for me,” he said. “At the end of the day, I can’t help that my wires are a little bit differently crossed than yours. I can’t help my mental makeup or the way that I was created.”
While Manziel, 25, is thrilled to be part of the CFL, Tiesi made it clear that he’s looking forward to being signed to the NFL again.
“I would say yeah, obviously, that’s where he started, he’d like to get back there, but at the same time, he’s really appreciating where we’re at and the people that gave him a chance, and if he’s here three or four years before he goes back, that’s fine,” she said. “But ultimately, yeah, that’s always going to be the goal.”
Tiesi’s words echoed Manziel’s own remarks after joining the Spring League in February. Manziel initially signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, but was buried on the bench behind star Jeremiah Masoli and was traded to Montreal two weeks ago.
“Football has been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember. Sometimes you take for granted how much you value something until it’s gone,” he said at the time. “My goal is to make it back to the NFL and I realize I have to earn that privilege. The Spring League has provided me with a great opportunity to play ball again, and ultimately, that is all I want to do. I miss the competition.”
For now, though, Tiesi and Manziel are happy that he can play at all.
“I feel so blessed that we’re here and that he gets another opportunity,” she gushed. “He’s such a football guy — he’s such a ‘that guy.’ It just changes him completely, being on a team and being around the guys again. Football’s his entire life.”