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'Could become bigger in Cleveland than LeBron James…' Skip Bayless bizarrely apologizes to Johnny Manziel for putting ‘added pressure’ on him after 2014 NFL Draft

Originally posted on FirstSportz | By Sumedh Joshi | Last updated 4/11/24

Every year, a fresh class of 200+ players enter the NFL with hopes of creating their legacy and fulfilling their longstanding dream of making it at the biggest stage in football. With this opportunity, comes a lot of pressure, especially for the first pick of the draft class. While being chosen first overall is considered a privilege and an honor, it comes with an asterisk next to it. The price of being chosen atop your draft class puts the pressure on the athlete to make an immediate impact on the team that drafts him and if he fails to do so, the bust allegations begin to surface.

Johnny Manziel‘s name has unfortunately become synonymous with the term bust. The quarterback established himself as a national phenom at Texas A&M, and the entire nation went berserk when Manziel was playing. At the time, analysts and fans alike had titled Manziel as the savior who would transform the quarterback position and that he would change the fortunes of the Cleveland Browns forever. The Browns had the first pick in the draft and that year, everyone knew who was going to be picked at the number 1 spot.

Skip Bayless was one of the analysts who had predicted Johnny Manziel to become a phenom bigger than LeBron James in Cleveland, thus adding more pressure upon him. The former NFL quarterback appeared on Undisputed on FS1 and had a sit-down with Bayless where the analyst ended up apologizing to him for adding that extra pressure on him.

.@RealSkipBayless apologizes to Johnny Manziel for the "added pressure" of living up to high expectations: pic.twitter.com/o9D1DjicmE
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) April 10, 2024

Johnny Manziel admits being happier after his NFL career ended as he was free from the expectations of fans

It was not just Skip Bayless but the entire sports media was convinced that Manziel was going to succeed in the NFL. However, while he had plenty of talent, he lacked the discipline that one needs to go along with to be great. Ultimately, the Manziel who played for the Cleveland Browns was worlds apart from the Manziel who carried Texas A&M. His run game and spontaneity failed to work in the NFL and after just two years, the Browns showed him the door by cutting him.

Silly me, I went so far as to say that you could become bigger in Cleveland Ohio than LeBron James because football is king in Cleveland...I thought if Johnny does what I think Johnny is capable of doing, you can OWN Cleveland, Ohio and it didn't go that way. I guess I'm apologizing to you, I hope I didn't increase the expectations to extraordinary levels that you couldn't live up to . Johnny Manziel added

Despite being the center of attention and having achieved immense fame, Johnny Manziel was in the darkest place as a person, he had issues with drugs and had nearly overdosed on a few occasions. Since then, he has turned his life around quickly. Now, despite being away from football, Manziel is happier than ever. He had a mature response to Skip Bayless’ apology.

I look back about it and laugh a little bit because at the end of the day, I had high expectations from myself, Skip. It wasn't just you, the same way that you thought about me and the way you spoke about me is probably how I genuinely felt with where my ego was and where I was at that point in my life. Johnny Manziel said

It is good to see that the former NFL quarterback is not in denial about his situation. He has acknowledged his mistake and has worked on himself to become a better person. To get a better idea about the Johnny Manziel story, you can watch his documentary on Netflix titled Untold: Johnny Football.

This article first appeared on FirstSportz and was syndicated with permission.

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