Had Johnny Manziel been cut from the CFL only a year or two ago, his chances at becoming a professional quarterback would be completely dashed. Thanks to the newly-formed Alliance of American Football which is currently in its inaugural season, Manziel has a chance to work his way back into the NFL. As unlikely as that may seem, Manziel is determined to do it but his first stop will be the AAF-worst Memphis Express.
The Express currently have a record of 1-5 and as general manager Will Lewis explained, Manziel could see the field in his first game with the team.
"In most cases when you get into a situation like this, you have to figure out how familiar the new guy is with what (offensive system) you're running," Lewis told the Memphis Commercial Appeal. "And that's part of the initial conversations and more conversations that will take place. (But) going back to what he ran at Texas A&M and comparing that to the concepts we run here, there's a good amount of familiarity, which leads you to believe you can put together a package or two for him where he'd be comfortable."
For now, Manziel is still practicing with the team and trying to learn the playbook. Considering the team's abysmal record and offense, it wouldn't be surprising to see Johnny Football on the field. Lewis still wants to take some precautions though.
"I think you can give him some things he can execute at a good level," he said. "But you don't want to throw him out there before he is ready just because people want to see him. I think there was some of that in Canada. So you want to make sure he's prepared and set up for success."
The Express will take on the Birmingham Iron on Sunday, March 24th at 8 P.M. EST.