Report: Jon Gruden tutoring Johnny Manziel
By Thomas Moore
May 26, 2015; Berea, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Josh McCown (13) and quarterback Johnny Manziel (2) during organized team activities at the Cleveland Browns training facility. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel spent the past week working with former NFL head coach and current ESPN broadcaster Jon Gruden.
The story was first reported by WalterFootball.com’s senior draft analyst Charlie Campbell.
“Johnny is doing everything possible to prepare for camp and this season,” Erik Burkhardt, Manziel’s agent, wrote in an email to The Akron Beacon Journal. “Who and how he’s going about his business will remain personal to him, the Browns, and his professional team.”
Related: Is Johnny Manziel really a bad backup QB?
The tutoring sessions reportedly focused on film study and on-field work for the second-year quarterback and current No. 2 quarterback on the Browns’ roster.
It’s nice that Manziel is doing something in his free time to work on his game. The problem is that can Gruden really do for him?
For reasons that have always escaped us, Gruden has carried around with him the title of “quarterback guru” after coaching four years in Oakland and seven with Tampa Bay. But outside of winning a Super Bowl with Tony Dungy’s players, and subsequently going 45-51 over the next six seasons with the Buccaneers, what has Gruden done? Where are the quarterbacks he developed? In the past he has with Kirk Cousins and Josh Freeman, who was released by Miami today.
Not exactly highlights to put on the old resume.
One thing that Gruden does have in his favor is that he is a fan of Manziel and his game.
“I don’t have any concerns [about Manziel],” Gruden said during a conference call last year before the draft, according to The Beacon Journal article. “I’m a Manziel – I don’t know what the word I should use is – advocate, proponent. I want Manziel. I realize he’s under 6 feet tall. Maybe he can’t see over the line. We blew that theory in the water last year with [Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell] Wilson and [New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew] Brees.
“I know he can learn. I spent two days with him, and I know he wants to learn. He had four different offensive coordinators at Texas A&M. He had two different head coaches. It didn’t matter. He adapted and did extremely well. This is the first Heisman Trophy winner as a freshman. In two years at Texas A&M, he had the most productive back-to-back seasons in SEC history. I don’t know what you want him to do. He threw for 8,000, ran for 2,000, he has 93 touchdowns. All I know is I want Manziel.”
If nothing else, having someone working to rebuild Manziel’s confidence after a horrendous rookie season and a prolonged stay in a rehabilitation facility earlier this year can only help.
As for the rest of Gruden’s knowledge? We’ll find out it there really is anything there when training camp opens next week in Berea.