Manziel is not a scheme fit
As we’ve seen throughout his tenure in the Bayou, Payton’s offense requires quick reads, pinpoint accuracy and tremendous pocket awareness. These are three things Manziel has never shown, even during his elite-level playing days at College Station.
Some might conclude that Manziel was strong with quick reads at Texas A&M. Considering the offense they ran, that makes sense. But it was almost always his first read. The Saints’ offense is predicated on going through reads in a short period of time and then placing the ball in an area where the receiver can put up yards after the catch (YAC). It’s a paramount theme of Payton’s offense, one that Brees himself has mastered.
There’s going to be a lack of interest in quarterbacks of Manziel’s ilk. For reasons still up for debate, this has left Colin Kaepernick unemployed up to now. The same can be said for former Washington Redskins and Cleveland Browns quarterback Robert Griffin III.
In reality, defenses have learned how to scheme against the one-read mobile quarterback. That would only be magnified in New Orleans with Manziel tasked with running an offense that doesn’t come close to fitting his skill-set.