There’s no love lost between Johnny Manziel and the Browns.
During a recent appearance on the “Nightcap” podcast, the famed NFL flameout — who spent two turbulent seasons in Cleveland, starting in 2014 — spoke about his disdain for the franchise as he reflected on his rocky tenure in the league.
“I think I will always be looked at and viewed at because of how much hype and media and everything that was around me, and the city of Cleveland expecting me to be great, and that ultimately not panning out,” Manziel told co-hosts Shannon Sharpe and Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson.
Warning: Explicit language
When mulling whether to let the Browns “off the hook” or hold onto the loathing, Manziel — taken 22nd overall by Cleveland in the 2014 NFL Draft — opted for the latter.
“I finally sit here today and I’m like, ‘F–k it, I think I’m going to be pissed at them and hate them forever, so, it is what it is,” he said with a laugh.
“No love for the Browns, I’m rooting for 0-16 seasons every season.”
A college football standout at Texas A&M, Manziel shot to fame in 2012 following an upset win over No. 1 Alabama on the road, leading to a Heisman Trophy win at the end of his first season as the Aggies’ starter.
The transition from college to the pros was a rollercoaster for Manziel, who grappled with substance abuse issues and off-field incidents leading up to his release from the Browns in early 2016.
Looking back on the messy fallout, Manziel relayed on “Nightcap” how he was the decision-maker in carving out that path.
“I sit here today, and a lot of people will hear me speak cause I tell stories and I’m doing the podcasting stuff, people will always be like I’m blaming stuff on other people, or I’m not accountable or anything like that, but listen, at the end of the day, everything I’ve gone in my life, that’s happned to me throughout my football career is only becuase of one person: myself, and the decisions I made as a man in this life,” he said.
“So, was Cleveland the best situation for me to go to, did they help me, knowing all the things they knew about me, with all the research and everything, did they put me in the best situation? Absolutely not. It was not the right siutation for me, but when it comes down to it, you take all of that aside, you throw it away, and you look in the mirror and say, I let an amazing opportunity slip, it’s on me, I’m the one that has to sit with myself every single night as I watch college football or watch NFL football and be like, ‘Damn, I would be in my 12th year. I would be XY and Z,’ I’m the one that has to lay my head on the pillow every night and be like, ‘That could’ve, would’ve, should’ve,’ but it wasn’t.
“And at the end of the day, a lot of my life as I’ve been out of football has been like what am I going to be able to do to find a spark, to be able to be happy, to be able to give me something like football did give me, and you know what, maybe it wasn’t meant to be for me, I didn’t put in the time or effort or determination that you need to be great, that both of you guys did for the sport, and that was just maybe my stupidity, my youth or what it was meant to be, and nevertheless, I take accountability for everything and what it is, I really didn’t harm anybody other than myself when it’s all said and done, so, we’re still sitting here today rockin, rolling, happy, healthy and we’re on the ‘Nightcap’ show now, baby.”
Manziel, 32, has been candid about post-NFL life in recent years, detailing in the 2023 Netflix documentary “Untold: Johnny Football,” how he contemplated taking his own life during a dark period after his Browns release.
“I had every single thing that I could’ve ever wanted. You have money, you have fame, you’re a first-round draft pick battling for a starting quarterback position, and when I got everything that I wanted, I think I was the most empty that I’ve ever felt inside,” Manziel said on the program.
Although Manziel once contemplated an NFL comeback, he has since pivoted to reality competition shows.
The former quarterback will be featured on the upcoming season of Fox’s “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test,” which features several athletes in the cast, including Eric Decker, Randall Cobb and Shawn Johnson.
As for Manziel’s former Browns team, they’re looking to rebound after a disastrous 3-14 run in 2024 when the new season kicks off Sunday against the Bengals.