Hamilton Tiger-Cats quarterback Johnny Manziel says signing with the Canadian Football League was all about wanting to get back on a football field as soon as possible.
Manziel said on PFT Live that he didn’t want to wait any longer, and that’s why he’s now in a CFL training camp, rather than hoping to end up in an NFL training camp or playing in the Alliance of American Football next year.
“It was really the wait,” he said. “I didn’t want to get into something down the road where I’m waiting until August, waiting until training camps open, and then if something doesn’t transpire I’m getting here late.”
Manziel does believe some NFL teams were considering him, but the offer to return to the NFL didn’t come and he had to make the decision to sign with the CFL.
“I think it was close,” Manziel said. “I did reach out and talk to multiple teams and coaches I had met in my first couple years in the league.”
Now Manziel has a competition in camp, where he’ll try to earn the starting job in Hamilton. He signed a two-year contract with Hamilton, so he won’t be returning to the NFL any time soon, if ever. But he’s glad the wait is over.