Saturday was a great day in Texas, not just for Johnny Manziel and his #Comeback SZN, but for his legion of fans packing Kelly Reeves Stadium and braving the bitter cold to attend his first game in about two years hosted by The Spring League.
After about a week of practice, Johnny joined his teammates on the “The South” for a cold and windy day of fall-like football, where he went 7 for 7 in the first quarter and pleased fans with a sweet touchdown while on the move with his third pass to Antwon Goodley.
Another view of Johnny’s electrifying playmaking.
Despite reports, Manziel did not play “most of the second half, or even most of the 4th quarter. He played about two quarters although time of possession limited his ability to do as much as he would like in the fourth with the score at 11l-7. Johnny finished 9 for 15, bagging 82 yards, and logging one touchdown and three sacks. No doubt that Johnny still has an amazingly accurate arm and skills requisite for the NFL.
“It’s disappointing, some of the things that happened, but nevertheless, it’s a huge step for me. I put pads back on. A lot of people wrote me off just to even get to this point. I’m definitely emotional about it. I’m definitely happy about it. This isn’t the end goal for me, but I’m having fun again. I have a smile on my face.” —Johnny Manziel
Despite missed opportunities (largely due to an unfortunate turn over that gave the ball back to the North), by and large Manziel hung out in the pocket, although he did leave it twice and demonstrated his famous ability to confound the defense with gains of 10 or more yards each time. The South’s O-Line could have given him considerably more protection as one extremely vociferous person kept loudly pointing out.
Some fans also remarked that “The North” team looked much better organized, but all eyes were on Manziel. The fourth quarter only had 2 minutes left with Johnny’s team down when he came in for the last time.
But there was plenty of magic left for those who stayed til the end. Johnny got in another good scramble and demonstrated some of his trademark skill with the get-away sticks! Fans were treated to several flashes of the Heisman icon throughout the evening.
More than half of the NFL teams sent one or more scouts to Austin (17 total) and the Raiders sent several scouts. We’re not sure what to make of that but clearly fans can make the logical jump. We’ll see what if anything comes of it! But it is a well known fact that Johnny was mentored strongly by Jon Gruden. Manziel appeared on Gruden’s “QB camp” in 2014. Johnny also took some time to watch film and talk shop with Gruden in between his first and second seasons with the Browns in an attempt to improve his game.
“I’d love to have him. “It takes courage to pull the ball down and reverse field and do some of the crazy things that Favre and Manziel do. There’s going to be consequences when sometimes it doesn’t work out. But it takes a tremendous amount of guts and courage to go make a play when there’s nothing there instead of throwing the ball away.” —Jon Gruden on Johnny Manziel
Gruden has more recently been quoted as saying he’d love to see Manziel make a comeback. Time will tell whether or not Gruden will play a part in Johnny’s football future. The raiders currently have a fairly full QB roster with Derek Carr, EJ Manuel, Connor Cook (former Browns QB) and Josh Johnson. Of course, Johnny has also volunteered for the practice squad, so if nothing else that might be a way to get his foot back into the NFL door.
Terry Shea, who has a lengthy resume of NFL and college experience, (read more about Coach Shea here) was pleased with Manziel’s performance and praised his abilities and work ethic, and told ESPN’s Kevin Seifert, “My bottom line is that there is no doubt in my mind that someone should sign him. I’ve seen enough of the quarterback skill. His endurance has not been an issue.” In addition to his coaching duties, Shea handles operations for The Spring League.
“You can get there only by working in this kind of environment. If he were back home throwing to his buddies against air, he wouldn’t get any of this, so from this standpoint, I would say he’s really grown here. I’ve never been around Johnny Manziel until this moment of time, but I see a very quick arm. I see very active eyes. He sees things, and those classic Johnny Manziel plays, particularly when he’s on the move, I’ve seen those come up here.” —Coach Terry Shea
Manziel was seen running the game, calling plays, mentoring other players and he seemed to be thoroughly engaged in the game. Shea was also favorably impressed with Johnny’s football savvy and remarked that his attitude and football knowledge was also well-rounded and thoughtful.
“And they’re not elementary questions, either,” Shea said. “We’ll introduce him to, say, a play where a quarterback can go to the line of scrimmage and have a ‘check with me’ to one run or another. And then he’ll say, ‘Coach, I understand doing it that way, but would you ever consider it this way instead, and here’s why?’ He’s not challenging. He’s inquiring, and that shows me an active and engaged mind.” —Coach Terry Shea
Shea and Gruden aren’t the only ones bragging about Manziel. Mike Freeman begrudgingly admitted that several NFL execs/several NFL teams believe that Manziel has “unlimited potential” … and several teams have confirmed interest. He didn’t elaborate, and his tweets were too negative to share. #NoHateZone
So, the general consensus is that Manziel looks great, still has amazing talent, an improved attitude and there is lots of interest in Johnny’s obvious potential.
Clearly there is an overwhelming amount of interest in Manziel. The Bleacher/Report Live stream of the game crashed and most fans missed the entire first half. That’s right … Johnny Manziel broke the internet!
Lots of JManFans, Aggies, and friends and family from Kerrville and beyond showed up in droves to see Johnny play again, including Johnny’s mom and wife. In addition to the maroon and white, there were a record number of #2 Comeback SZN jerseys and a surprising number of brown and orange Manziel jerseys too. The Aggies fans did their typical yells and joked about importing a few yell-leaders for the next game!
There were about 2500 freezing people in attendance at Kelly Reeves Stadium, but never fear, the announcer reminded us in good-humored fashion that it would be almost 80° on ThursdayApril 12th when Johnny will play next.
For information on the games, stadium and how to watch, visit our post from last week
“The message that I’m sending is showing up every day and going to meetings,” he said. “Being engaged in everything that is going on during practice and in the game. I can’t control what is going on [with NFL teams’ interest], and I don’t know what’s going on in NFL meetings. If that’s the case, if the NFL is something that pops up, cool. If not, I’m going to work until I get back there. We’ll see how things play out.” —Johnny Manziel
Manziel still has well over a month to contemplate future plans and entertain potential offers before camps start for the CFL.
But in the meanwhile we look forward to seeing everyone at Thursday’s game! Remember kids 9 and under are free. Get tix here: http://bit.ly/2F1GL3h
And hopefully a lot of JFF fans will also get a chance to check out Saturday’s Maroon and White flag football game in College Station!
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