The Cleveland Browns finally made it official, announcing they have waived quarterback Johnny Manziel on Friday, making him an unrestricted free agent if no team claims him in the next 24 hours. The team had made their intentions to part ways with Manziel known in early February.
"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," Browns director of football operations Sashi Brown said at the time. New Browns head coach Hue Jackson, per a source cited by ESPN's Dan Graziano, also made it clear internally that he didn't want Manziel to be his starting quarterback once he got the job.
The Browns traded up to the #22 slot in the 2014 NFL Draft to select Manziel, putting questions about Manziel's work ethic while playing/partying at Texas A&M behind them while focusing on his skill set as a dual-threat QB. However, that's all a moot point now as the Browns will eat $4.6 million against the cap by waiving him.
Manziel was questioned by police back in October for another domestic incident with his girlfriend. It is unclear at the time whether or not Saturday's incident involved the same girlfriend.
In the October altercation, several witnesses called police after seeing Manziel and a woman engaged in an argument in a vehicle -- with the incident escalating to such a level that the woman attempted to flee the car on the highway. Manziel told police they had been drinking earlier in the day, but the police office on site determined that Manziel was not intoxicated at the time of questioning and did not charge him.
The NFL investigated the circumstances around the incident and announced back in November that Manziel would not be disciplined.
Manziel's 2015 season continued to take turns for the worse, however, starting with a demotion from starter to third-string quarterback in November after a video surfaced with him holding a bottle of what appeared to be alcohol during the team's bye week.
Over a month later, Manziel was reportedly seen wearing a disguise at a club on the weekend of the team's final regular season game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was ruled out with a concussion for the contest, but came under fire after missing a mandatory meeting with team doctors on Sunday morning.
Manziel appeared in 14 games over the last two years for the Browns, passing for 1,500 yards, seven touchdowns, and five interceptions in nine games during the 2015 season.
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