Breaking Down Johnny Manziel's Impressive Preseason Debut

If there is one thing Johnny Manziel is used to, it's attention. Despite Brian Hoyer being named the starter for the Cleveland Browns' first preseason game, Manziel was the main attraction and did not disappoint.

Fans would have been unsatisfied if they were expecting wild, game-breaking plays from Manziel. In fact, he was the exact opposite; he was under control, poised and used his ability to extend plays when needed during a 13-12 loss to the Detroit Lions on Saturday night.
On paper, Manziel finished his first preseason game 7-of-11 for 63 yards and a QB rating of 79.0. In reality, he was light-years further than most thought he would be at this point. That means the quarterback competition in Cleveland is alive and well.
Of Manziel’s four incompletions, one was a poor, rushed throw in pressure (see breakdown below), one was a possible completion if the coaches had reviewed the play and the other two were great throws dropped by inexperienced receivers. It is tough to find something to dislike in Manziel’s first game.
He also used his legs efficiently. One of the main worries with Manziel was that he would take off at the first sign of pressure. On Saturday night, he showed the ability to go through his progressions and only use his legs when the situation called for it (six times for a team-high 27 yards).
Before we break down some individual plays from Manziel’s first NFL game, let’s see what some of the national pundits had to say.