Johnny Manziel '100 percent' happy to be out of constant spotlight
BEREA, Ohio -- Johnny Manziel is thrilled to be out of the spotlight and pleased with his development as a quarterback, he said Thursday in his first media session since training camp started.
The second-year Cleveland Browns signal-caller said he is "100 percent" happy no longer to be the subject of hype and constant attention, adding that just being able to be one of 90 on the roster is "so nice."
"It's nice to come out here and wear any kind of shoes that I want and it's not the main story the next day," Manziel said.
In the offseason, Manziel had said he was nearly overwhelmed by the hype of his rookie season and needed to reduce it.
"The hype is a little bit tempered and a little bit down, and that for me is a good thing," he said. "Now I can just come out and play and do my game and really get to learn, because that's what I really needed to do is to learn."
Because he can further concentrate on his job, Manziel said he has grown in his knowledge and understanding of the Browns' offense.
"Off the field for me right now is just really simple. It's football right now, and it'll be that way throughout the rest of the season," Manziel said.
Results are starting to appear on the field. Manziel had two good days of practice heading into the team's intrasquad scrimmage at Ohio State on Friday night.
"It's night-and-day difference from last year. It's night and day from the first day even coming out here," Manziel said. "I'm pleased with the progression of getting better and coming out some of these days and having a high completion percentage and getting the ball where it needs to go.
"Now there's the little things that are keeping me from taking another step."
Manziel detailed his transition from Texas A&M to the NFL, saying in college he never knew a protection or had to identity the middle linebacker. He said with the Aggies, it was "snap the ball and go."
There were even times this spring when he wondered whether he'd ever get it, but he now understands why coaches said the NFL game eventually would slow down for him.
"I've kind of gone through the wringer for a year, and now it's just coming out and getting better," he said. "There's not as much pressure."
Coach Mike Pettine said Manziel will get reps with the starters at the scrimmage at Ohio State, as the team will not overwork Josh McCown, whom Pettine said is still "firmly the [starter]."
"When you come in every day with a great attitude and you work and it's important to you, you can't help but get better," Pettine said. "I'm just happy for him that he's getting the results on the field and the guys around him sense that as well."
Pettine described a play Manziel made in 11-on-11 drills during practice that illustrated his progress.
"The defense was a heavy-blitz look. He walked up, changed the protection, stepped up in the pocket and threw a touchdown pass," Pettine recalled. "That was probably, start to finish, his best play of camp. But it just typified it was more preparation than anything else. I just think he has so much more of an intimate knowledge of what we're doing. Some of it's physical, but I would say the majority of it is the mental part of it, understanding protections.''
Manziel said he is "not getting caught up" in the starter-backup decision. He's simply going to play his best and see what happens.
"[I'm] just another guy on the team, and I think everybody is responding well," he said. "I'm just happy to be out here and coming to work every day. It's a lot of fun. It's a lot of fun with the staff we have. It's a lot of fun with the guys we have in this locker room. "I can honestly say that coming to work every day is not a drag."
Manziel did not want to get into his personal life, making only a brief reference to his 10-week stay at a treatment facility shortly after the 2014 season concluded.
"From when the season ended," he said, "I did what I needed to do to try to put myself in the best position to make sure that I was good in every facet of my life moving forward."
