Posted on 02/12/2018 7:01:24 AM PST by DoodleDawg
Former Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel says he wants to return to the NFL and adds that he has cleaned his life up since a series of incidents that ultimately got him cut from the team that drafted him.
Manziel said he was self-medicating with alcohol and suffering from depression. He says he is now taking medication for bipolar disorder.
"Thats what I thought would make me happy and get out of that depression," Manziel said to ABC News. "When I would wake up the next day after a night like that, going on a trip like that, and you wake up the next day and that is all gone, that liquid courage, or that liquid ... sense of euphoria that is over you, is all gone."
Manziel, now 25, burst upon the scene with Texas A&M in 2012 becoming the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy.
"I had a sense of entitlement about what I had accomplished at the age," he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
Regardless, for those teams not wanting to take a chance on Kaepernick, they can always go with Manziel.
Good luck with that, Johnny Unemployed.
Being undisciplined and arrogant has consequences. You ain’t no Nick Foles, Johnny.
Unfortunately, there are no second chances here — high quality people are lining up to be drafted each year. Johnny blew it.
A General Manager would be an idiot to even bring him to training camp.
I’ve heard of a lot of recovered alcoholics who find, in the absence of alcohol, they’re not bipolar OR depressed. Amazing how that works.
Agreed, he’s a disaster. He had his chances and he wasted them.
Well, bi-polar is a real diagnosis, even if it's overused.
If Manziel is ACTUALLY bi-polar, there's a good chance he can live a productive, non-f***ed up life with meds - but there's no chance he should be an airline pilot, a brain surgeon, or an NFL quarterback.
Unless you’re Michael Vick, Ray Lewis, Ray Rice etc etc etc
Yes, but it seems it's either chicken or egg. Some with bipolar disorder self-medicate with alcohol, and then become alcoholics. Some alcoholics become severely depressed as their lives fall apart.
Alcohol can sneak up on you. I remember in college thinking that I could never be at risk of alcoholism because it made you feel like crap in the morning if you drank at a party. I couldn't imagine being able to drink again the next day, or ever wanting to. After going out into the real world, with all the stress, and starting to have a glass or 2 of wine, or sometimes 3 at night because of how intense the day was, you start to realize that we are a lot more susceptible than we think. Won't make that mistake, thank God, but I'm much less dismissive of the possibility than I was before.
Go play in Canada. Show that you have the talent and discipline. If you succeed, you could make it back.
Someone’s out of money.
I believe in people being able to turn their lives around, and people being given the chance to do it.
That said, he had already squandered chances that few others are ever given, so the odds for him are small.
And, like you said, at best he will be backup somewhere, if that. Anybody who pays him money is going to be sitting on a potential time bomb...Manziel has shown he doesn’t have mental toughness, and that is a quality even more important than a strong arm for an NFL quarterback.
Or else really doesn't want to play in Ontario in November.
I’m a recovering alcoholic, and had my last drink about 18 years ago.
I can’t speak for Johnny, but alcoholism is misdiagnosed by a majority of doctors and psychiatrists.
I doubt that he could even play the game anymore.
I don’t know, I still think he would be a good fit as the backup in Seattle. The receivers all know how to get open when the line breaks down and Wilson starts to scramble and Johnny has the same escapability.
O, bi-polar is what they call a very serious disease.
Risky hire, but if he’s cleaned up it would be a big draw and TV ratings.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.