Johnny Manziel Says He Misses Football 'A Ton,' Hopeful for Another Shot at NFL

Johnny Manziel has had discussions with NFL teams about a potential return and said he misses playing football "a ton."

Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News provided a quote from the former Heisman winner on Saturday:

Manziel, 24, did not play in the NFL last season after being released by the Cleveland Browns amid myriad off-field issues. He checked into a rehabilitation facility in February 2015, and his father told the Dallas Morning News (h/t Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot) "he won't live to see his 24th birthday" in February of last year.

In a January text conversation with ESPN's Ed Werder, Manziel said he's sober and did so without the use of professional help.

"I refuse to let my entire life of sports from the age of four be squandered by partying," Manziel said. "I just got sick of it. One day I didn't like what I saw in the mirror and realized I could really help people in the position I'm in.

"I love sports, I love football and when you take something away from yourself you realize it the hard way. The happiness from doing it sober has been ASTRONOMICAL. Beyond my wildest imagination and once that continued other good things started happening in my life and it just clicked."

Manziel continued to take ownership of his situation in his conversation with Machota:

With Manziel also having a history of alleged domestic violence, it's difficult to see a team taking a chance on bringing him in. It's likelier that he'll have to prove himself in the Canadian Football League and stay sober for an extended period of time.