Johnny Manziel released by Montreal Alouettes, banned from play in Canadian Football League

| American Football | 02/28/2019

Former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel was released by the Montreal Alouettes on Wednesday. A statement posted on the league’s website stated Manziel would not be allowed to sign a contract with any team in the CFL, and would be vetoed by the league should a team attempt to sign him.

The CFL terminated the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner’s contract with the Montreal Alouettes on Wednesday. The league also informed the eight other teams that it wouldn’t register a contract for Manziel if any tried to sign him.

The league said Manziel had violated an agreement that made him eligible to play in the CFL.

CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie:

“We advised Montreal that Johnny had violated one of the conditions we had set for him to be in our league. And Montreal announced his release today. We didn’t release the terms of those conditions then and we’re not going to do that now. “

It’s unclear what precipitated the decision by the Alouettes and the CFL, however general manager Kavis Reed said in a statement that Manziel did not adhere to conditions in his contract.

“We are disappointed by this turn of events. Johnny was provided a great deal of support by our organization, in collaboration with the CFL, but he has been unable to abide by the terms of his agreement. We worked with the league and presented alternatives to Johnny, who was unwilling to proceed.”

Manziel was signed by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2018 before being traded to Montreal. He went on to have moderate success with the club, completing over 64 percent of his passes and throwing for 1,290 yards along with five touchdowns and seven interceptions.

The CFL initially did not approve Manziel to enter the CFL when he tried in 2017. It wasn’t until several months later that the league, after meeting their terms, allowed Manziel to sign with the Tiger-Cats. The league, Manziel, and the teams he has played for have remained tight-lipped about the nature of the agreement.

Manziel was taken in the first round, no. 22 overall, in the 2014 NFL Draft by Cleveland. But following two tumultuous seasons, the Browns released the Texan in March 2016 after he posted a 2-6 record as their starter. Manziel appeared in just 14 games with Cleveland, completing 47 of 258 attempts for 1,675 yards with seven touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also ran for 259 yards and a touchdown.

Manziel released the following statement:

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