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Manziel throws touchdown in Spring League outing

[April 09, 2018] Johnny Manziel was back on a football field playing against live competition on Saturday, but it remains to be seen if it will lead to an NFL comeback.

Manziel threw a touchdown and completed 9 of 15 passes for the South squad at the Spring League in Austin, Texas. He was also sacked three times.

The Spring League is a developmental program in which players pay for a chance to practice and then play in games in hopes of impressing NFL scouts.

"It's disappointing, some of the things that happened," Manziel said, per ESPN, "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."

Manziel has also thrown in front of scouts and coaches at two pro days in recent weeks, telling reporters he hopes an NFL team reaches out.

The league has another set of games on Thursday. If he fails to receive interest, Manziel says he'll have to make a decision on whether to make a two-year commitment to the Canadian Football League.

"The message that I'm sending is showing up every day and going to meetings," Manziel 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."

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Manziel's CFL rights are held by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, who extended a qualifying offer in January. Their general manager was among several NFL and CFL representatives on hand for Saturday's showcase.

Manziel was released by the Cleveland Browns, who took him in the first round of the 2014 draft, in March 2016 after numerous off-field issues and a suspension under the NFL's substance abuse policy.

"It took me awhile to really overcome that and get to where I was comfortable with it, but once I did, I started seeing an improvement in all aspects of my life," Manziel said recently of his previous problems. "The people that I have around me ... I have a good team around me and I've cut off a lot of the leeches that have been around me in my life and it was really needed and really necessary."

--Field Level Media

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