Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel reportedly has a target date for when he will leave rehab and rejoin the team this offseason - just don't expect the Browns and Manziel to show up on your television screens for the latest installment of the NFL/HBO joint venture, "Hard Knocks" - at least not if the Browns have anything to say about it.
Cleveland head coach Mike Pettine told Patrick McManamon of ESPN while at the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix that the Browns and NFL Films met this week and the team made it clear they would not be volunteering to appear on the show.
Why?
According to Pettine, at least part of the reason is Manziel and the exponentially increased scrutiny that would immediately be placed on the young signal-caller.
"You just weigh everything in," said Pettine, who was a part of the "Hard Knocks" experience previously while an assistant with the New York Jets. "Because being a part of 'Hard Knocks,' having been there, knowing they're going to look to cover the team's biggest current storylines, it's obvious that he would be a point of attention."
While it would make for great television viewing to watch as a young, highly-touted NFL quarterback attempts to focus in on his professional football career while simultaneously struggling with a plethora of personal issues, not the least of which is directly related to his current rehab stint, it makes complete sense that the Browns and Pettine would do everything in their power to avoid such a massive distraction.
"When we decided not to volunteer for 'Hard Knocks,' we discussed everything that was involved with it," Pettine said. "[Manziel] is certainly something we needed to consider."
ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported Tuesday that the Browns were targeting early April - offseason workouts being April 20 - for a Manziel return. He has been in rehab since Jan. 28.
It's possible that the league could still force them to star on the show, though NFL Films, per McManamon, would prefer a team volunteer, but at least for now it seems Pettine and the Browns have made it clear that they have no interest in offering their offseason machinations and the struggles of the fallen-from-grace Manziel as fodder for the general NFL viewing public.
