Is Johnny Manziel Making Enough Progress to Satisfy Browns, Fans?

The NFL preseason offers a series of snapshots. Glimpses, really, and opportunities to either validate or smash preconceived notions of how far along a young player's development should be at this point.

That’s not meant to be a disclaimer. Instead it’s an acknowledgement of why evaluating Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel—the league’s most polarizing backup at the position this side of Tim Tebow—is delicate in August.

There are no wide-ranging conclusions that one can draw from the Heisman Trophy winner’s 11 pass attempts and 19 total snaps Thursday night during a 20-17 loss to the Washington Redskins. Any search for a definitive statement on his future is foolish.

But what fans, coaches and teammates need to see is something that’s eluded Manziel so far in his sputtering NFL career: progress.

Even a hint of it against a second-team defense—and with mostly a second-team offense as support—would satiate a hunger for hope.

There’s a desperate need for the Browns to believe Manziel can mature into a long-term answer at quarterback, because current starter Josh McCown is little more than a 36-year-old journeyman place holder.

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During his 2015 preseason debut, Manziel fueled that hope by repeatedly executing simple but fundamental quarterback movements. The same footwork that seemed foreign a year ago when he was constantly frantic in the pocket is more fluid now. He looked at ease and in rhythm with the playbook, knowing where each ball was destined, knowing the exact timing for his release.

Most of all, he looked more like an NFL quarterback instead of a college athlete who succeeded through a combination of raw instincts, improvisation and prayer.

As Bleacher Report’s Jason Cole noted previously during the Browns' intrasquad scrimmage August 7, the seeds for a new, more polished Manziel may have been planted this preseason.

His athleticism hasn’t gone anywhere. That’s still what gives Manziel his sizzle and flare, even if the money sign is long dead.

What’s different, however, is when Manziel chooses to use his wheels.

Against Washington he didn’t treat the pocket as though it were a burning ring of fire that must be vacated immediately. He dropped back, settled and threw quickly. That led to seven completions on 11 attempts (63.6 percent) for 42 yards.

The resulting 3.8 yards per attempt was a product of both Manziel’s patience to find the checkdown option and what Browns offensive coordinator John DeFilippo asked him to do. The focus was on short to intermediate routes, and DeFilippo tasked Manziel with making quality pre-snap reads and trusting his vision to let an accurate throw fly.

When he did run, it was with purpose. To shrug off his 12-yard touchdown scramble seems easy. We know Manziel can run, and it’s kind of what he does.

But he didn’t run recklessly or abandon the play before it had a chance to develop. He ran because it was the path of least resistance to a touchdown.

The play came during the second quarter when Manziel lined up on Washington’s 12-yard line. The Browns had been gifted quality field position by a punt return fumble, and they were looking to capitalize by rolling out a shotgun formation with three receivers spread out to Manziel’s left.

The Redskins were in man coverage, which meant a mobile quarterback was about to see a lot of green grass in front of his usually itchy feet.

Credit: NFL GamePass

Manziel could have easily been tempted to tuck and run right away, perhaps being overzealous before that space emerged. But instead he followed the script by taking a three-step drop and bouncing forward once his back foot planted.

That’s when he briefly found the comfort of a cozy pocket.

Credit: NFL GamePass

He stepped into it after looking to his first read on the right and then to a checkdown option up the middle.

The play had been exhausted with a five-man rush closing in, which is when Manziel saw the backs of defenders who were still in man coverage and recognized his best option: run.

Credit: NFL GamePass

Looking forward, Manziel saw no burgundy jersey within 10 yards of him. He didn’t force the run or flee before the designed play had a chance to unfold. He dropped back with composure, scanned the field, starting on the right, and then gladly accepted what the defense offered.

Again, what we saw there was only a passing moment against the Redskins' second-team defense, and a peek at what could be developing. But maybe, just maybe, Manziel is learning a Bill Walsh-ism: exhaust the play.

When the iconic San Francisco 49ers head coach was working with the mobile Steve Young, he preached that running should only happen once the play has reached its conclusion.

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“I’d run for 10 yards,” Young told Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle in 2014. “Or I’d scramble around and throw the ball for a nice completion or something, and he’d say, 'That’s great. But nobody knows where you are. And the truth is, if you really want to make the most of it—get everything out of the play that I call. You left (the pocket) early. You didn’t explore every avenue or option.’”

The Manziel who abandons that principle and doesn't explore his options first before running will still appear often. So will the guy who fumbles snaps (as he did Thursday), and the quarterback who makes a hurried read that nearly ends in an interception (as he did Thursday).

But if the flashes of field awareness settle in mentally to become habit, then there’s still room for hope yet.

And at this point, any hope is progress.

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