Johnny Manziel throws interception on first drive in disastrous CFL debut
Johnny Manziel’s CFL debut did not go well.
The outspoken quarterback finished the game 11-for-20 with 104 yards, no touchdowns, and four interceptions in the Montreal Alouettes’ 50-11 loss to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats Friday night.
It did not take long for things to spiral out of control.
On his second pass (his first was a shovel pass for a loss of five) as a quarterback in the Canadian Football League, Manziel tossed an interception to his ex-teammate, Larry Dean.
Johnny Manziel's first CFL pass was not a good one pic.twitter.com/CJhG6Sq0lk
— Yahoo Canada Sports (@YahooCASports) August 3, 2018
And moments later, with the Montreal Alouettes already trailing 21-0, the CFL rookie’s first flash of brilliance would be spoiled by a poor attempt at a catch and another interception.
Johnny Manziel escapes a sack, but ends up throwing it away for his second interception of the game. #CFLGameDay #FNF pic.twitter.com/lTVmkeMT79
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) August 4, 2018
But there was a positive in an otherwise brutal start. With his team later trailing 28-0 in the first quarter, Manziel completed his first pass in the league for a small gain, garnering a tepid standing O from the fans in attendance.
Johnny scramble. #CFLGameDay #FNF pic.twitter.com/nEVSlPicXm
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) August 4, 2018
But the celebration was short-lived as Manziel threw his third interception of the half shortly after.
Three interceptions and two tackles for Johnny Manziel.#CFLGameDay #FNF pic.twitter.com/PoOmDppLIO
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) August 4, 2018
With Montreal trailing 35-3, the former NFL first-round pick was under pressure and lobbed up his fourth interception in just the first half of play.
Johnny Manziel throws his fourth interception of the first half.#CFLGameDay #FNF pic.twitter.com/1aa7eZgfRD
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) August 4, 2018
With the game all but over and the score sitting at 47-3, the Als pulled Manziel out of the game in the fourth quarter.
The former Heisman Trophy winner was given the opportunity to start just 12 days after being traded by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to the Alouettes, so a few rough moments should have been expected.
Having to learn a team’s playbook is a process that is typically granted an entire off-season to master, but having to pick it up in under two weeks in a foreign league naturally was going to cause a few issues.
Unfortunately, the 25-year old’s learning curve is not doing the Alouettes any favours. Through the first six games of the season, the Als only have one win. Given the fact they parted with two players and two first-round picks to acquire a package headlined by the highly touted QB, they need results as soon as possible.
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