Though he was back playing football on American soil, the same issues that plagued Johnny Manziel during his time in Canada followed him back to the United States.
Though he did not turn the ball over, the former Heisman winner failed to impress during his Alliance of American Football debut on Sunday night.
Over the course of three series under center, Manziel went 3-for-5 for 48 yards, rushed for 20 yards, and took a sack. Following a defensive score by his team, the Memphis Express, Johnny Football also had a failed two-point conversion.
The lone highlight of Manziel’s day was a 36-yard pass to Alton Howard, but that scoring drive stalled in the red zone.
HERE'S JOHNNY. @JManziel2 now under center for the @aafexpress on @nflnetwork 📺. pic.twitter.com/0FWDaDh5BE
— The Alliance (@TheAAF) March 25, 2019
Memphis starter Brandon Silvers played the bulk of the game against the Birmingham Iron and helped lead the Express down the field for a score to tie the game with 24 seconds left.
Then, in overtime, he secured Memphis’ second victory on the season with a 10-yard touchdown pass. The final score was 31-25.
Brandon Silvers with some BIG-TIME plays down the stretch! 🔥🔥
Dan Williams on the receiving end of the game winner!
The @aafexpress take it 31-25 in overtime!
— PFF_AAF (@PFF_AAF) March 25, 2019
Even though Silvers badly outplayed Manziel in the comeback win, there’s little doubt the new AAF player will get another shot under center based on name recognition alone.
Despite that, head coach Mike Singletary did his best to downplay any talk of a quarterback controversy.
“Right now, Brandon is our quarterback,” Singletary said. “I’m very excited about what Johnny does and what he brings to the team, but Brandon is our starting quarterback.”
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