Johnny Manziel enters rehab: NFL quarterback’s partying ways take their toll

NFL quarterback Johnny “Football” Manziel — whose partying habits have been well-documented — has entered rehab.

FILE - In this Sunday, Dec. 21, 2014, file photo, Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel (2) sits on the bench during the second half of an NFL football game against the Carolina Panthers in Charlotte, N.C. An advisor for Manziel said in a statement released by the team Monday, Feb. 2, 2015, that Manziel has decided to enter treatment for an unspecified condition. (AP Photo/Bob Leverone, File)

CLEVELAND Browns quarterback Johnny “Football” Manziel — whose partying habits have been well-documented — has entered rehab.

“Johnny knows there are areas in which he needs to improve in order to be a better family member, friend and teammate and he thought the off-season was the right time to take this step,” family adviser Brad Beckworth said in a statement.

“On behalf of Johnny and his family, we’re asking for privacy until he rejoins the team in Cleveland.”

The statement said Manziel went to the rehab facility last Wednesday.

Manziel, who was drafted with the 22nd overall pick in last year’s draft, made two starts for the Browns this season and struggled mightily, barely completing 50 per cent of his passes, averaging only five yards per attempt, and throwing two interceptions.

@Deadspin not the greatest of pics, but here's Manziel enjoying some X games after party festivities in Austin at Rio pic.twitter.com/PqZNr4TB3F

— Eric (@Ekydoog_Cire) June 7, 2014

In addition, there was constant discussion of his night-life activities, photos of him drinking in various locales and one carefully parsed photo that appeared to show Manziel rolling up a dollar bill in a bathroom.

“We respect Johnny’s initiative in this decision and will fully support him throughout this process,” Browns GM Ray Farmer said in a statement. “Our players’ health and wellbeing will always be of the utmost importance to the Cleveland Browns. We continually strive to create a supportive environment and provide the appropriate resources, with our foremost focus being on the individual and not just the football player. Johnny’s privacy will be respected by us during this very important period and we hope that others will do the same.”

Johnny Manziel rolls a dollar bill. Picture: Busted Coverage

It’s been tumultuous rookie year for the former Texas A & M star — from making the money sign on draft night to this news, which emerges the day after the Super Bowl.

Before he even played an NFL down, Manziel wasted no time “living the life.” He spent Memorial Day weekend in Las Vegas, where he hung out with the Patriots’ Rob Gronkowski. At various points during the summer, he took photographs with Drake, as well as Floyd Mayweather and Justin Bieber.

In June, he was photographed lying on an inflatable swan, chugging a bottle of liquor.

In July, a photo surfaced of Manziel in a bathroom, appearing to roll up cash. The Browns — who previously told Manziel to curtail his partying ways — did not comment on the photograph.

As Manziel’s rookie season wore on, some warning signs began to show.

In late December, just before the Browns finished their season against the Ravens, team security had to locate Manziel, who missed a team Saturday walk-through. ESPN reported he had “partied hard” the night before and was “drunk off his a–.”

After that incident, ESPN loudmouth Skip Bayless controversially called Manziel a “liar” and an “alcoholic.”

“It is time for me to come down harder on a concern that I repeatedly voiced on this show before Johnny was drafted. My concern, I repeatedly said, was if Johnny continues to demonstrate that he has a problem with alcohol, and a problem with alcohol leading to partying and all that that entails, then I’m going to be out,” Bayless said.

“I’m going to be off the bandwagon. I will no longer support a kid that I do like personally, and I have come to that point, Stephen A. In talking to people in and around the Cleveland Browns, I believe Johnny Manziel continues to have a problem with alcohol. And I believe, Stephen A., that it is time for Johnny to get some help. He continues to lie to his executives, to his coaches, to his teammates, to the media, and most of all, he continues to lie to himself.”

Now consider this: In the summer of 2013, when Manziel was still in college and the defending Heisman Trophy winner, Manziel’s father predicted there would come a time when his son’s demons caught up to him.

“Yeah, it could come unravelled. And when it does, it’s gonna be bad. Real bad,” Paul Manziel told ESPN the Magazine. “It’s one night away from the phone ringing, and he’s in jail. And you know what he’s gonna say? ‘It’s better than all the pressure I’ve been under. This is better than that.’”

Manziel added his son drinks to deal with stress, and has anger issues.

“I don’t know where the anger comes from,” Paul said. “I don’t think he knows. If it comes from his drinking, or if he’s mad at himself for not being a better person when he fails, when he fails God and his mom and me. If it makes him angry that he’s got demons in him. You can only speculate because you can’t go in there.”

This story originally appeared in the New York Post

Originally published as Johnny Manziel enters rehab: NFL quarterback’s partying ways take their toll