Former Browns QB Manziel says he tried to kill himself
CLEVELAND — Former Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel revealed in an upcoming documentary that he tried to commit suicide after being cut by the team in 2016.
Manziel, who was drafted by the Browns in 2014 following a wildly successful college career at Texas A&M, said in the Netflix documentary “Untold: Johnny Football” that a drug addiction contributed to his downfall.
Manziel said he lost 40 pounds after going on a “$5 million bender.” He was also in legal trouble at the time on charges he allegedly hit and threatened his then-girlfriend.
At his low point, the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner tried to end his life.
“I had planned to do everything I wanted to do at that point in my life, spend as much money as I possibly could and then my plan was to take my life,” Manziel said in the documentary, which is scheduled to be released next week. “I wanted to get as bad as humanly possible to where it made sense, and it made it seem like an excuse and an out for me.”
Manziel said when he pulled the trigger the gun malfunctioned.
“Still to this day, don’t know what happened. But the gun just clicked on me,” he said.
Manziel was released by the Browns in 2016 after playing 14 games in two seasons.
The 30-year-old tried several comebacks but never returned to the NFL.
BEARS: Chicago Bears legend Steve McMichael is in intensive care after being hospitalized in the southwest suburbs Thursday night, according to his publicist.
McMichael, 65, was admitted due to sepsis and was unconscious upon arrival. He was administered antibiotics intravenously and, as of Friday morning, was awake with improving vital signs. He is also battling pneumonia.
McMichael was diagnosed with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) in January 2021 and has lost the ability to move or talk.
A core starter on the Bears’ iconic 1985 Super Bowl championship defense, McMichael played 191 consecutive regular-season games and 12 playoff contests during his 13 seasons with Chicago. In 15 NFL seasons overall, he recorded 95 sacks, the fourth highest total among defensive tackles of all time.
Earlier this month, McMichael drew closer to potential induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame when a list of 31 Seniors Committee semifinalists was cut to 12. McMichael made that list along with, in alphabetical order, Ken Anderson, Maxie Baughan, Roger Craig, Randy Gradishar, Joe Jacoby, Albert Lewis, Eddie Meador, Art Powell, Sterling Sharpe, Otis Taylor and Al Wistert.
On Aug. 22, McMichael’s case will again be presented to the Seniors Committee. At least one — and up to three — Seniors nominees will then be selected to the Hall of Fame’s Class of 2024, whose enshrinement ceremony will come in August 2024.
McMichael still holds the Bears’ record for regular-season games played by a position player, a mark he shares with Olin Kreutz. His 13-season run with the team is the fourth longest of any player, trailing Patrick Mannelly (16), Doug Buffone (14) and Bill George (14).
McMichael’s wife Misty has emphasized what being selected to the Hall of Fame would mean to her husband.
And in a statement issued by McMichael’s publicist, Misty said, “He needs to see himself enshrined in the Hall of Fame.
Please pray for him to get through this.”
SEAHAWKS: Seattle wide receiver Dee Eskridge was suspended Friday for the first six games of the regular season for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy following a domestic violence incident last offseason.
Eskridge will be permitted to participate in all preseason games and practices but will have to leave the team before the start of the regular season. He will be permitted to return to the active roster on Monday, Oct. 23, following Seattle’s Week 7 game against Arizona.
Eskridge’s representatives released a statement Friday saying that he had been arrested on misdemeanor charges following an incident with his child’s mother in February, and that Eskridge — whose first name is D’Wayne — has entered into a therapy program where the charges will be dismissed following completion.
CHIEFS: In St. Joseph, Mo. — Chiefs defensive end Charles Omenihu was suspended Friday for the first six games of the regular season for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy following an alleged domestic violence incident in January.
Omenihu was playing for the 49ers when police were called to his San Jose home for a report of domestic violence, according to the San Jose Police Department. A woman who said she was Omenihu’s girlfriend told officers at the time that he had “pushed her to the ground during an argument,” though there were no visible injuries and she declined medical treatment.
The 49ers allowed Omenihu to continue playing, and he had two sacks and a forced fumble in their three playoff games.
Omenihu, who has missed the past two days of training camp with a calf issue, has participated in the entire offseason program with the Chiefs, who signed him to a two-year deal to replace departed pass rushers Frank Clark and Carlos Dunlap.
The 25-year-old Omenihu remains eligible to participate in camp and he can play in the Chiefs’ three preseason games. But he will miss regular-season games against Detroit, Jacksonville, Chicago, the Jets, Minnesota and Denver. He is eligible to return to the Kansas City practice facility on Oct. 13 and play Week 7 against the Chargers.
EAGLES: Philadelphia offensive lineman Josh Sills was acquitted Friday of raping and kidnapping a young woman and former high school classmate in his Ohio hometown.
A jury delivered the verdict after about three hours of deliberations following four days of testimony. Sills, 25, was found not guilty of forcibly restraining the woman in his pick-up truck and forcing her to perform oral sex after he drove her home in December 2019.Fuium ego publ