Cleveland Browns’ quarterback Johnny Manziel weekend itinerary is still a mystery.
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. This was not the case for Manziel as several employees and customers stated that they saw the quarterback eating and gambling at the Planet Hollywood in Sin City on Saturday.
Last week, newly-fired Browns’ coach Mike Pettine announced that Manziel will miss the Week 17 finale against the Pittsburgh Steelers, due to a concussion suffered when he rushed for 108 yards in a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Manziel was not seen at Firstenergy Stadium where Steelers pulled off a much needed win to head back to the playoffs.
Was this a big deal? Probably not because Browns VP of communications Peter John-Baptiste told The Plain Dealer on Sunday that there was no rule preventing Manziel from going to Las Vegas and the team does not require concussed players to be at the stadium for home games. Although players who have concussions are sensitive to noise, light and are encouraged to rest as they recover, and casinos are not the best place to do that.
But what made it interesting was when he posted a photo on his Instagram account on Saturday night of him lying on the floor with his dog, using the hashtag #SaturdayNights and location tag Avon Ohio. (Note: Instagram doesn’t require a phone’s GPS location for a user to list a location on a post.)
Adding to the intrigue, Sports Illustrated reported that Manziel also missed checkup at team headquarters Sunday morning and couldn’t be reached on his phone all day. The Texas native was also quoted expressing interest to play with Dallas Cowboys.
Pettine and the rest of the team are not commenting on a report.
Manziel spent 10 weeks in a rehab facility last winter specializing in drug and alcohol abuse. He began the season as Josh McCown’s backup, eventually took over as starter and was benched two games by Pettine after a video surfaced of him partying in Austin, Texas, during the team’s bye week.
