Shedeur Sanders has generated major buzz in Cleveland following the 2025 NFL Draft, but 11 years earlier the Browns had an even bigger quarterback prospect: Johnny Manziel. His time in Cleveland ended in disappointment, and after just two seasons, he was forced to continue his career outside the NFL.
Manziel wasn’t an ordinary college prospect. Cleveland drafted him 22nd overall in 2014 after the Texas A&M star became the first freshman to ever win the Heisman Trophy back in 2012. That season, he set an SEC record with 4,600 yards of total offense, guiding the Aggies to a 10–2 regular-season finish. He threw for 3,419 yards and 24 touchdowns and added another 1,181 yards and 19 rushing scores.
He returned to A&M in 2013 and posted even bigger numbers: 4,114 passing yards and 37 touchdowns, plus 759 rushing yards and nine scores. Across his two seasons, he amassed 9,989 total yards and 93 touchdowns. He reached the Heisman ceremony again as a finalist, finishing fifth behind Jameis Winston.
Manziel outperformed Sanders as a rookie
Sanders didn’t see game action until Week 11, and through his first three games, ESPN’s QBR ranks him slightly lower than Manziel at the same stage. Sanders’ QBR is 7.0, compared to Manziel’s 7.8 after five games during his rookie campaign.
QBR measures a quarterback’s overall impact from passing and rushing to turnovers, penalties, and situational performance.
Their rookie numbers look strikingly similar. Sanders has completed 50.8% of his passes; Manziel completed 51.4%. Sanders averages 6.6 yards per attempt, while Manziel averaged 5.0. One area where Manziel stands above Sanders is sack avoidance: Sanders has been taken down six times in three games, whereas Manziel was sacked only three times in five appearances. Manziel also found the end zone on the ground something Sanders has yet to accomplish.
Critics argue Sanders holds the ball too long. Without screen passes, his completion rate drops to a league-low 42%, and his average time to throw rises to 3.6 seconds. That combination slow decisions and inaccurate throws has put Manziel slightly ahead when comparing their rookie seasons. Considering how Manziel’s career ended, the hope is that Sanders’ path unfolds differently.
Manziel reflects on his downfall
Manziel has recently spoken about his NFL failures, saying he carries “shame and regret” over how things ended.
On the show Special Forces, he admitted: “I lost a huge part of my work ethic… I gave up on a real opportunity a football career and walked away from it far too quickly.”
He explained that achieving everything he thought he wanted left him feeling “empty inside,” and he tried to suppress those feelings and escape the “Johnny Football” persona.
The pressure he faced grew so severe that after leaving the NFL he said he “bought a gun that I knew I was going to use,” and planned to spend all his money before ending his life. Thankfully, he did not follow through.
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