LeBron James is warning Johnny Manziel critics not to be so fast to give up on the Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback.
Manziel’s first NFL start on Sunday hardly rated as a smashing success with the Cincinnati Bengals routing Cleveland 30-0 and the former Heisman Trophy winner passing for just 80 yards. Still, James insists it’s all part of the learning curve all young athletes must endure.
“I’m not disappointed,” James told Cleveland.com. “I’m a friend that supports, and it’s only one game.”
With James intently watching, Manziel completed just 10 of 18 passes with two interceptions against the Bengals.
“I understand better than anyone how the game plays out and how it operates, so he’s put in a lot of effort, and you can’t blame everything that happened on just one game,” said James, whose LRMR marketing firm also represents Manziel. “Being a professional means you’ll make mistakes, and how you recover from them shows your true character.”
In the wake of the debacle that left Cleveland at 7-7 and all but eliminated from postseason contention, Manziel told reporters “it was tough. When you get beat, you get beat and you take it like a man. I felt like it was a fail on my part.”
Throughout the game, the Bengals taunted Manziel almost as much as they harassed him in the pocket. Several Bengals players openly mocked Manziel following big hits by flashing the “money sign” that has become one of his signature gestures.
“Didn’t play well,” Browns coach Mike Pettine said of his rookie quarterback. “We didn’t play well around him, but he made some obvious mistakes that typically a veteran quarterback won’t make.”
On one of his two interceptions, Manziel was picked off in the end zone by Adam “Pacman” Jones just before halftime.
“You can’t throw that one whether you’re in Pop Warner or a 6-year-old playing in the driveway,” Manziel later lamented. “That’s 100 percent on me.”
[Photo Credit: Keith Allison]