Johnny Manziel ‘can be an exceptional NFL quarterback,’ says Doug Flutie
Last December during the Heisman Trophy festivities, former winner Doug Flutie pulled Johnny Manziel and Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin aside to offer a little advice.
“I told them, ‘Get through this, grin and bear it, smile for three days, and then go home. Go back and get ready for football,’†Flutie told For The Win over the phone while promoting the new EA Sports NCAA Football 14. “That’s the stuff that keeps you sane, your routine.â€
Manziel, of course, did the opposite. He had quite the extravagant offseason that was criticized nationwide.
“Johnny, I think, really enjoys the celebrity part of it,†Flutie said. “He likes being on the talk shows, he likes throwing out the first pitch, he likes sitting courtside at the NBA Finals, he wants all that. And that’s all well and good. If you want that, great, but realize when you’re doing that, you’re going to get the negative publicity with it. And that’s the part that’s obviously very frustrating to him.
“He’ll turn back around and say, ‘Hey, I’m a 20-year-old kid, I should be allowed to do this.’ Yeah, you are, but 20-year-old kids aren’t going on late night talk shows or throwing the first pitch and everything else. So it’s your choice.â€
Some pundits believe Manziel will forgo his junior and senior years at Texas A&M and enter the NFL Draft after this season. However, there’s been a mixed bag of analysis of how the Heisman winner will fair on the professional stage.
Flutie thinks Manziel can be as good as he wants to be, and called his arm strength and ability to stand in the pocket and read coverage “excellent.â€
“I think he can be an exceptional NFL quarterback,†he said. “The NFL right now, they love to see guys 6-4, 6-5. I was too short to play when I played, and they wanted you 6-1 to 6-3. But the athletic quarterbacks are getting more of an opportunity to run the spread offenses, run the zone read and do all that.â€
Flutie understands what it’s like to be an undersized quarterback at 5-10. Manziel is listed at 6-1, 210 lbs. on the Aggies website.
“He’s taller than Drew Brees,†Flutie said. “He’s a lot stronger than he looks. He looks like a thin, skinny guy, but he’s built. He’s pretty jacked up.â€
Flutie is looking forward to the start of the college football season, which is only weeks away, and said he’s anxious to watch Manziel go up against Alabama in Week 3.
“Will be interesting to see if someone can dethrone those guys,†Flutie said of the Crimson Tide.
As far as predictions go, the former Boston College All-American said he’s nervous about Clemson in the ACC and thinks Ohio State has the best shot of taking down the SEC for the national championship.
http://ftw.usatoday.com/2013/08/doug-flutie-thinks-johnny-manziel-will-be-excellent-in-nfl/