Johnny Manziel's calculated separation from the Johnny Football persona continued with Jon Gruden's "QB Camp" show on ESPN, which will feature Manziel and other top quarterback prospects for the 2014 NFL Draft for a series of episodes this spring.
A segment of the show aired Thursday, and Gruden got right to the point on Manziel's off-field reputation:
"Every time I turn on the TV, you're on there," Gruden said.
Answered Manziel: "I never wanted it to be that way. I never wanted to be like that, and I'm not that kind of guy. I'm not the kind of guy that causes any problems with my team or in my locker room or with my coaches. I don't want that. I don't want them to think I'm high maintenance or ... take a lot of work to keep up with. I'm a simple guy from a small town."
That's the Johnny Manziel NFL teams with an early first-round pick and a need at quarterback will want for a face-of-franchise investment in the former Heisman Trophy winner. Manziel admitted to being enthralled by the celebrity-like attention he received early in his college career, particularly after winning the Heisman.
"I was asked to do a lot of things. I was asked to do certain things that some other people weren't asked to do. My mom always tells me there's a time and a place for everything, and during the spring, during and after the Heisman when things happened so fast, I did too much," he said. "I put too much on my own plate and didn't say no enough and should have said no more and should have stayed in my realm and stayed in College Station and hung out."
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