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Former Texas A&M and Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel recently appeared on Shannon Sharpe’s podcast and revealed the shocking extent to which he was addicted to cocaine.
According to the now 31-year-old Manziel — who was the first freshman in the history of college football to win the Heisman Trophy — revealed that he was on a “strict diet of blow” which resulted in him losing 40 pounds.
Manziel specifically mentioned his infamous trip to Las Vegas, which saw the former first-round pick looking dangerously pale and gaunt.
“I was 210 pounds when I left Cleveland. I was 170 pounds sitting in Vegas that August, September, October, whatever it was,” Manziel said.
When Sharpe asked him how he lost so much weight, Manziel responded by saying, “How do you lose 40 pounds? You’re a strict diet of blow.”
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As evidenced by the Netflix documentary that was released last year, Manziel looks much healthier and is doing much better these days. Still, given the immense promise he showed in his early days at Texas A&M, he’ll likely always be followed by a question of “What if?”
Manziel’s admission about his cocaine usage isn’t the only bombshell he dropped on Sharpe’s podcast as he also revealed that his Dad tried to orchestrate a $3 million deal to keep him at Texas A&M for another two seasons.
After two seasons as the starting quarterback at Texas A&M, Manziel declared for the NFL Draft in 2014 and was selected by the Cleveland Browns with the 22nd overall pick.
Manziel spent just two seasons in the NFL with the Browns, playing in 15 games and starting in 8. In those 15 games, Manziel completed 57% of his passes for 1,675 yards, 7 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions, while also carrying the ball 46 times for 259 yards and a touchdown.