Cleveland Browns coach Mike Pettine has had to answer all sorts of questions about Johnny Manziel – and on Friday he said he wasn’t going to do it any more.
Pettine deflected any questions about Manziel’s troubled week, and said he was just focusing on Monday night’s televised game with the Ravens.
“When I say I’m sorry to disappoint, I’m not really,” Pettine said when probed about Manziel. “But I’m just not going there today. We got a game to get ready for Monday night.”
Manziel was demoted from starting quarterback this week after video emerged of him partying in Austin, Texas the previous weekend, when the Browns had a bye week. Earlier this year, Manziel spent time in rehab for alcohol and drug treatment, and ESPN reported on Thursday that Manziel had lied to the coaching staff about his most recent party video.
Pettine said on Friday he already had explained his thinking behind making Manziel the team’s third quarterback, and didn’t wish to discuss it further. He added he already had made clear that “trust and accountability” were the issues that led to Manziel’s demotion.
Manziel was punished after the publication of the video, which showed him holding a champagne bottle in a nightclub in Austin.
On Wednesday, Pettine declined to comment on whether Manziel had admitted the video was from the bye weekend, and on Friday Friday, he declined to discuss the situation at all.
Josh McCown will start for the Browns Monday night against Baltimore.
“The decision’s been made,” offensive coordinator John DeFilippo said. “I support that decision 100%.”
Pettine and DeFilippo both said they were not sure if Manziel would be active against the Ravens.
