Allen Kee / ESPN Images(CLEVELAND) — Johnny Manziel’s future with the Cleveland Browns is not looking good. Citing a league source, ESPN reports that the quarterback will be released from the team come March.
The reported move comes after two rocky seasons for Manziel in Cleveland — both on and off the field — including failure to comply with the NFL’s concussion protocol and, most recently, an alleged assault.
In a statement Tuesday, Browns executive vice president of football operations Sashi Brown didn’t explicitly say Cleveland was considering releasing Manziel, but noted that the Heisman Trophy winner’s status with the team will be addressed at a later time.
“We’ve been clear about expectations for our players on and off the field,” Brown said. “Johnny’s continual involvement in incidents that run counter to those expectations undermines the hard work of his teammates and the reputation of our organization. His status with our team will be addressed when permitted by league rules. We will have no further comment at this time.”
The mention of league rules may indicate that the Browns are restricted by their salary cap space from letting go of Manziel on Feb. 8, when NFL teams are allowed to release players. The source says the team will make the move on March 9, when the new NFL year begins.
As ESPN explains: “Releasing Manziel in February would count $4.6 million against the cap, and due to the cap’s machinations, the Browns do not have that space — and will not have it in February. The cap will increase in March, which will allow them to release Manziel then.”
Copyright © 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
