Manziel looks sharp in CFL debut

HAMILTON It was a decent first showing for Johnny Football.

Johnny Manziel completed 9-of11 passes in his first appearance with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, but it was the Toronto Argonauts who cruised to the easy 36-18 victory at Tim Hortons Field in the exhibition opener for both teams.

Manziel, 25, certainly didn’t look out of place, but faced a Toronto defence minus most of its starters and Hamilton was very conservative in its play-calling. The six-foot, 210-pound Texan, who signed with the Ticats two weeks ago, directed five drives (22 plays) and was especially effective throwing on the run.

But Hamilton, which played most of its starters, surrendered seven first-half turnovers (two interceptions, three fumbles, two on downs).

The former Heisman Trophy winner entered the game late in the first half and played much of the third quarter. Manziel was solid on his final possession, engineering a 12-play, 62-yard drive that took 7:27 off the clock, although he was flagged for a 22-yard intentional grounding penalty.

Manziel threw for 80 yards and ran twice for 10 yards. But Hamilton’s biggest play was Frankie Williams’ 73-yard punt return TD to end the third, cutting Toronto’s lead to 33-13.

Manziel saw his first action since being released by the NFL’s Cleveland Browns on March 11, 2016. The Browns took the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner in the first round, No. 22 overall, in the 2014 NFL draft.

Manziel entered the game with 3:38 remaining in the opening half with Hamilton trailing 13-6. His first pass was a nine-yard completion to Jalen Saunders, then Manziel hit Felix Faubert-Lussier on consecutive strikes before being sacked by Jonathan Dowling.