Former Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel has revealed that he used to sneak out of the Cleveland Browns team hotel at 5 a.m. on game days to smoke and play video games with veteran teammate Josh Gordon. Speaking on a recent episode of the Glory Daze podcast, the former NFL quarterback detailed how the duo routinely broke team protocols during his turbulent tenure with the franchise. Manziel explained that he would set an early alarm before noon kickoffs to walk from the team’s downtown Cleveland hotel to his personal apartment, where he and Gordon would turn on FIFA and consume marijuana together all morning.
Johnny Manziel Reveals Late-Night Hotel Escape with Browns Teammate
The revelation offers a fresh look into the off-field chaos that defined Manziel’s brief and disappointing stint in the professional ranks. Drafted No. 22 overall by the Browns in the 2014 NFL Draft following a stellar collegiate career at Texas A&M, Manziel entered the league carrying immense expectations. However, his transition to the professional level was quickly derailed by a failure to master the playbook and a relentless partying lifestyle that alarmed organizational leadership. Despite entering the league promising team executives that he would mature, Manziel went on at least eight party trips during the 11-week stretch between his draft day and training camp.
“I would set an alarm if we had a game day at, like, noon or whatever it was. I would leave the team hotel at 5:00am. Me and JG [Josh Gordon] would walk from downtown Cleveland hotel we were at to my building.”
“We would go to my building. We would turn FIFA on and we would rip the f*cking bong all morning and smoke a blunt.”
“And he would go play some snaps or he would be suspended and wouldn’t be playing, and I was the backup and I ain’t never touched the field one time after doing that.”
Tensions between the quarterback and the franchise reached a breaking point during the 2015 season when photos and videos of his off-field exploits continued to surface online. Then-head coach Mike Pettine ultimately demoted Manziel to third-string quarterback after he partied during the team’s bye week. Pettine publicly expressed deep disappointment in the quarterback’s choices, emphasizing that success at the position required a level of discipline that extended far beyond Sunday performances. The organization officially released Manziel on March 11, 2016, effectively ending his NFL career after just two seasons and six total starts.
Subsequent attempts at a professional comeback yielded minimal results for the former college superstar. Manziel signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League in 2018 before being traded to the Montreal Alouettes later that year. His stint in Canada ended abruptly in February 2019 when the CFL directed Montreal to terminate his contract for violating an eligibility agreement. Today, Manziel resides in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he lives a significantly quieter life outside of professional football and has recently explored potential opportunities in celebrity boxing.
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