NFL Draft Player Profile: Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M

by Derrik Klassen

Johnny Manziel. Photo credit to MySanAntonio 

After recently tweeting (and then deleting the tweet) that he was tired of the college scene, it is almost certain that we will hear Manziel's name in May. Contrary to common belief, I strongly recommend that he doesn't declare for the 2014 draft.

He won the Heisman as a Freshman, so he's ready for the NFL, right? Think again. Honestly, he still has a long road ahead of him before he is ready for the NFL. His athleticism alone will not enable him to succeed in the NFL.


Physical traits and athleticism:
Coming in at 6'1" and 200 Lbs, Manziel is a bit under-sized, but as Russell Wilson proved to us, that can be overcome. While it is a problem that can be defeated, it certainly isn't helping him. Other than Devin Gardner (Michigan), Johnny Football has the best overall athleticism/physical tools for a QB. His combo of his speed and ability to put a nice zip on his passes may be lethal if he can hone these abilities. Unfortunately, these traits are useless if they aren't used correctly.....

Mechanics:
If Manziel knew proper footwork, he'd have a lot less problems when he throws. He can be caught on many occasions where he fails to set his feet correctly even though he clearly has the time and space to do so. His accuracy could be much improved if he took the extra half of a second to plant his feet and drive the ball out of his hands. Instead, he relies solely on his arm to make the throws and his accuracy suffers. His placement and ability to lead WRs would greatly improve if he got these simple mechanics down. Also, his throw motion seems to be rather lengthy. He needs to pull his arm up and fire more quickly.

Mental Make-up:
This is another are in which the young star struggles. Too often we saw Manziel make one read and then just take off. That won't fly in the NFL. His "run first" mentality will immediately restrict him from succeeding in the NFL. He needs to sit in the pocket and run through his progressions more often and more effectively. in the  Even when he does stay in the pocket for a while, he tends to wait too long. This is either due to him doing it because with that OL, he knew he could get away with it or he simply doesn't trust his arm. Either way, he shouldn't be holding onto the ball nearly as long as he does when he actually runs through progressions. It is also quite frustrating to see him constantly throw 50/50 balls at Mike Evans and expect him to catch every single one.

Arm Talent:
The velocity that Manziel manages to get on his throws is rather impressive. He fires lasers all over the field. Even on deeper throws, he keeps a tight spiral and throws it on a rope. Unfortunately, Manziel struggles with accuracy at times. When watching tape, you see him overthrow quite a few receivers. Gauging depths will be something that he will learn over time, but he certainly struggled with it last season. Manziel only flashed a few passes that required elite accuracy. While they were impressive, they were rare.

Draft Grade (as of now):
Those who believe Manziel is either a top 5 QB in this class or worthy of a 1st round pick need to re-evaluate all of the QBs. His potential is limitless, but at this point, he's nothing more than a young kid with just that: potential. I'm not saying that he can't fix these things, because he certainly can, but I'm saying that he has glaring issues and they need to be addressed before he can be considered anything more than a 3rd or 4th rounder.