Manziel More Than A Hero?

On May 8, the Cleveland Browns, a team with little hope, drafted Johnny Manziel with the 22^nd pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.  Cleveland has suffered many heartbreaks dating back to the 1980’s.  Including, nearly making the Super Bowl two consecutive years, moving to Baltimore in 1990’s, and have had only one postseason appearance since an expansion team moved to Cleveland, fifteen years ago.  Manziel, a dynamic and young quarterback, beckons hope for Cleveland, in more ways than one.  Since, ‘Manziel’s arrival in Cleveland fueled a spike in ticket sales, sponsorships and merchandise’, but is all that attention a good thing?

            

          Johnny Manziel has had his fair share of trouble.  He was arrested before playing a snap at Texas A&M University and has ‘raised his middle finger toward the Washington Redskins’ bench’.  Manziel was fined $12,000 for the latter action.  The Browns have been marketing Manziel and his famous, trademarked nickname, ‘Johnny Football’.  T-shirts have been selling for up to $45.  24 hours after the draft, Cleveland has already sold over 2,300 season-ticket plans, showing no signs of slowing down.  Manziel is a media magnet, which is what creating all the love from life long Browns fans.  The Browns have used Manziel as marketing pitch and it has obviously worked out for them.  Unfortunately, for Johnny Football fans, is that Brian Hoyer has been named the Week 1 starter for Cleveland.  Last year, Hoyer didn’t lose a start last year, before having a season-ending ACL tear.  Manziel shows hopes to small-market teams like the Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Minnesota Vikings, that they can not only compete with the big-market teams like the Dallas Cowboys and New England Patriots on the field, but also in commission.  Johnny Manziel can help the Browns create income in multiple ways.  The first being a media sweetheart, and bring in tickets just to catch a glimpse of him.  Or he could bring in revenue by getting better, winning the starting job, and leading the Browns to a winning season.  In the long run, picking Manziel should show to be a smart pick, as he can help Cleveland win, while brining in revenue at the same time.