The Cleveland Browns seem juuuuuust about done with quarterback Johnny Manziel. On Wednesday, they released this statement about the troubled former Heisman Trophy winner, seemingly indicating that the team will be cutting ties with him as soon as they can.
Full statement from Sashi Brown pic.twitter.com/uddEr5FE8a
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) February 2, 2016
Here’s the full text of the statement from EVP of Football Operations Sashi Brown.
“We’ve been clear about expectations for our players on and off the field. 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. We will have no further comment at this time.”
Yeah. That’s not exactly complimentary. ESPN’s Pat McManamon reports that Manziel will be released in March because the Browns can’t afford to absorb Manziel’s salary cap hit until the beginning of the new league year in March.
The reference to league rules points to the fact that the Browns do not have the salary cap space to release Manziel on Feb. 8, the day after the Super Bowl and the first day they can do so. The move will take place when the new NFL year starts March 9, according to the source. Releasing Manziel in February would count $4.6 million against the cap, and due to the cap’s machinations, the Browns do not have that space — and will not have it in February. The cap will increase in March, which will allow them to release Manziel then.
The latest Manziel-related incident came over the weekend, when Fort Worth police questioned Manziel about an alleged incident between him and his girlfriend.
And now…we wait for the hammer to finally drop on Manziel. The only real question is whether or not he’ll get into more off the field shenanigans before he gets cut in about five weeks, which would likely damage his already weak stock even more in the eyes of other teams.
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