If it wasn’t already, the clock is certainly now ticking on Johnny Manziel’s future in Hamilton.
The Canadian Football League has drawn a line in the sand when it comes to allowing the former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback to join the Ticats or one of the league’s eight other teams.
The CFL says it will not approve a contract for Manziel until after this season, and only if the one-time NFL QB meets certain conditions put forward by commissioner Randy Ambrosie.
We don’t know what those conditions are, but there’s surely going to be a set of strict rules that “Johnny Football” can’t break.
And he can forget about a three-strikes-and-he’s-out scenario: Manziel’s getting one chance given his checkered past, which includes well-documented episodes of alcohol and drug abuse.
The CFL also ruled that Manziel will stay on Hamilton’s negotiation list until Nov. 30, essentially giving the team two more months to hammer out a contract or consummate a trade with another club.
The “Johnny Football” phenomenon will bring a lot more attention to Steeltown and perhaps sell more tickets at Tim Hortons Field.
That’s one of the reasons why I don’t think the Ticats will trade Manziel’s rights unless VP of Football Operations Kent Austin gets an offer that blows him away.
Hamilton has gone to great lengths to have Manziel work out for them and must believe that he has the talent to succeed in 3-down football.
The thing is, we won’t know that until we see him in action.