Johnny Manziel has, by all accounts, been impressive for the Cleveland Browns this summer in his second year as a pro. However, he had to cut his practice session short on Sunday because of a sore elbow, which also forced him to sit out of practice last week.
Manziel had just delivered this pass deep down the right sideline on Sunday when he pulled himself out of practice.
Manziel delivers a pass to Josh Lentz deep down the sideline. #Browns pic.twitter.com/wEgYvOZyXw
— Hayden Grove (@H_Grove) August 23, 2015
After speaking with Manziel, head coach Mike Pettine told reporters he didn’t “anticipate this being a long-term thing,” but noted they would know more after speaking with the trainer.
#Browns Pettine on Manziel: don't anticipate being long-term thing. Will know more after talk to trainer.
— Scott Petrak ct (@ScottPetrak) August 23, 2015
Is this going to be a problem going forward?
Remember, the third preseason game is less than a week away. The Browns will travel to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday, August 27. This is the game when, traditionally, teams leave their starting players in for one half, if not three quarters.
To this point in the preseason, through two games, Manziel has completed 17 of 29 passes (58.6 percent) for 160 yards with one touchdowns and no interceptions. He’s also added 33 rushing yards on five carries with a touchdown.
Josh McCown has outplayed him to this point in the preseason, so the former Texas A&M star already had his work cut out for him to steal the starting job away from the veteran. If Manziel’s nagging elbow injury causes him to miss much more practice, and potentially a game, then you can kiss any thought of him starting in Week 1 goodbye.