Turns out that troubled former Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel actually isn’t rollin’ in as much cash as we all might think he is, because, according to Pro Football Talk‘s Mike Florio, the team voided JFF’s guaranteed money before releasing him—which was the remaining $2.173 million on Manziel’s contract.
Per three different sources with knowledge of the situation, the Browns voided Manziel’s remaining guaranteed money before cutting him. No grievance was filed by the NFL Players Association in response to the voided guarantee, apparently because Cleveland’s case for voiding the guarantees was regarded as open and shut.
As PFT explained in March, the Browns had the power to void Manziel’s guaranteed money in various ways:
(1) a suspension imposed by the league under any policy
(2) a suspension imposed by the team
(3) failure or refusal to report, practice, or play
(4) leaving the team without prior written consent.
Manziel went AWOL and was allegedly spotted wearing a disguise in a Las Vegas casino the night before a Week 17 game—when he was expected to be at the team’s facility—so that may have been the Browns’ reason for voiding the remaining cash on his deal.
So, yeah, I hope Johnny’s paying for all these insane vacation pads, private jets and luxury sports cars in cash, because Manziel won’t be seeing the $2.173 million he thought the team would be sending him. Maybe he can just get a job selling his old jersey for $1.99?
According to Florio, the former quarterback did not fight to keep the guarantees.