Since so many people know that I'm a long-time Cleveland Browns fan, I get a lot of texts, emails, and live conversations from folks that want to bash, make jokes, or even just talk about Johnny Manziel.  It's very different for me that after decades of "why?" or "Wow, I'm sorry" regarding my devotion, now everybody is talking about the Browns...especially on TV.  So from time to time, I'll chime in with an opinion, or an answer...like today.

I'm gonna start by repeating my draft day opinion, which is that the Browns got many things when they drafted Manziel.  They got the media circus, they got hope, they got a kid with a lot of talent...but they didn't get "maturity".  At first, I defended him when his Las Vegas trips got so much attention.  I didn't care about "what happens in Vegas" as long as he was working just as hard at becoming a good pro quarterback.  Now that he's been late for some team meetings, has chosen to hang around with the other rookies most of the time, flipping off the Redskins bench on National TV .... I'm gonna repeat my initial assessment.  Immaturity.  He's not even close to having the required maturity for the trade, and that may be the single biggest reason he may never make it.  You can't just identify the problem, and then fix it in a month.  He's never needed discipline, so he's never developed it.  And while it may come with time, most NFL quarterbacks that come in to the league without that pre-required maturity level don't last.  There's barely enough time to learn the new X's and O's as it is, let alone "grow up" under the daily social and media microscopes.  You need to have accomplished most of that by the time you get there, and he didn't.

So to all my friends, acquaintances, sympathizers, and the rest ....  thanks for your thoughts.  I think that I'm gonna start watching Connor Shaw's development (QB from South Carolina) instead.

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