The Colin Kaepernick — Johnny Manziel Comparisons Need to Stop
Welcome back to The Junction. In this week’s roundtable, the GSC panels looks at the very different challenges two former QBs face as they try and make it back to the NFL.
With Colin Kaepernick and Johnny Manziel still trying to make it back to the NFL, analysts have been quick to group the two quarterbacks together, and constantly compare their situations. Manziel tweeted that he’s “tired” of these comparisons and also expressed support for Kaepernick, whom he said is “changing lives.” Is it fair to compare the two players?
Brandon Anderson: Manziel and Kaepernick should be compared as quarterbacks, sort of like Rob Ford and Barack Obama should be compared as politicians. Just because one of them was in the news for a bit before partying his life away doesn’t mean he should have any right to be compared to a pioneer who stood up for things and made a real difference in the world. The comparison is unfair to both really, but it’s inevitable. Manziel was never good in the NFL, not even for a game. Kaepernick was an outstanding quarterback who almost singlehandedly won a playoff game against the Packers and who led his team to the Super Bowl. It’s perfectly fine for a reformed Manziel to get another chance at the NFL, like just about any first-round pick would, but it’s not okay that Kaepernick continues to be blackballed by the league. Colin Kaepernick is a hero who has changed lives and made an impact far beyond the sport of football. I’m tired of the Manziel comparison, but I appreciate that Manziel shined the spotlight back where it matters.
Micah Wimmer: The conflation of Colin Kaepernick and Johnny Manziel does not make a ton of sense to me. One is a very good quarterback being blackballed by the league for disrupting its hegemony by fighting for justice, while the other was perpetually irresponsible, not that good at being a quarterback, as well an alleged domestic abuser. There is no good on-field reason for Kaepernick to not be on an NFL roster right now, but there certainly are reasons for Manziel. While the former helped lead a team to the Super Bowl, the latter showed intermittent promise on an awful team. I will say that when I remember how exciting Manziel was at Texas A&M, there is certainly a part of me that wants to give him a second chance. And, while I certainly feel greater empathy for him in light of him sharing his struggles with bipolar disorder, I hate the idea of anyone who abuses another person being allowed to play in the NFL — even though the league itself has historically felt much less shame about that. Sure, both players are similar in the fact that they’re both out-of-work quarterbacks who want a chance to play in the NFL again, but apart from that, these comparisons fail to account for the massive differences in their situations and in how much they deserve to be on a team this Fall.
serge: If you want to stretch this argument very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very thi… sorry… very, very thin, then sure, you can maybe make a case for both being able to create on the move and off their feet ,as well as in the pocket. But, that’s roughly where it stops. Johnny Manziel has not earned the luxury of comparison to any accomplished signal caller in the NFL. Maybe to the cast of Jersey Shore, given how his NFL career played out so far. And yes, I do consider a quarterback who almost won a Super Bowl and singlehandedly almost took out the Packers, accomplished. The reality of the situation is that their circumstances aren’t anywhere close to one another’s. They’re so far apart, Manziel may as well be on Mars.
While there needs to be a larger discussion about mental health and the role of the NFL in preparing young men for the life of a sports superstar, Manziel’s situation is self-made in the sense that he chose to party it away. Kaep took a stand for something that we all should be taking a stand for, and is being blackballed by the league because it’s “uncomfortable” (also possibly because some of the owners are rich white men who like the status quo). He should also be in the league, given some of the names that got to start under centre this season. There really isn’t an argument about his skill level, whereas Manziel has zero proven track record in the NFL of getting the job done.
