THE HERD - Hour 3 - Johnny Manziel Joins The Herd

Summary

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The Herd with Colin Cowherd: Hour 3 – Johnny Manziel Joins The Herd

Date: March 12, 2026
Podcast: The Herd with Colin Cowherd
Episode Theme: Redemption, mentorship, and insight into college/NFL football through the lens of Johnny Manziel's journey and life lessons.

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Overview

In this insightful episode, Colin Cowherd welcomes former Heisman-winning quarterback Johnny Manziel (“Johnny Football”) for a candid conversation about his mentorship of Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia, how Manziel’s life and perspective have matured, the ever-changing landscape of college football (including NIL and the transfer portal), and the lessons he's learned from his tumultuous NFL career. The tone is frank, reflective, and at times humorous, with Manziel offering humility, accountability, and a desire to help the next generation avoid his mistakes.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

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1. Johnny Manziel as Mentor: Can You Learn from Mistakes?

[02:41–07:42]

• Context: Cowherd initially questioned Pavia's choice to lean on Manziel as a mentor, given Manziel's well-publicized struggles. After discussing it with Matt Hasselbeck (also mentored by Jeff George), Cowherd realized that learning from those who have “been through it” can be powerful.

• Manziel’s Take:

  • Knowing Pavia personally, having dined with his family, and witnessing the college culture (noting SEC QBs always have a spotlight, but still partake in partying).

  • Manziel didn't avoid tough love:

    “Diego Pavia was partying before he ever met me… These are college kids… you have more eyes on you… After the Heisman… I didn't talk to him for a couple days after that… Then when I spoke to him… ‘You have to do the things that I didn't do. You have to carry yourself with a little more class.’”
    — Johnny Manziel, [05:16–06:27]

  • His advice revolves around accountability and preparation:

    “When you go to the combine, they may drop a binder… with everything that you’ve done wrong… You need to be prepared… get out in front of it and do the things that I didn't do…”
    — Manziel, [06:35]

  • Emphasized Pavia’s non-elite draft status, stressing the importance of work ethic and surrounding oneself with the right people.

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2. Regrets, Growth, and Accepting Life’s Path

[07:42–10:47]

• Cowherd’s Prompt: Does Manziel have any regrets?

  • Cowherd observes: “You’re a free spirit… Is there one thing you do regret?”

• Manziel’s Reflection:

  • Acknowledges wishing he’d made changes earlier—could have fun later, but should have first “set yourself up for success.”

  • Admits:

    “I look back at a career that I know and I’m honest with myself about how it went. Do I wish I would have got to play longer? … But I very much told myself in my head and I’ve come to peace with what my football career was.”
    — Manziel, [08:35]

  • Embraces his current ability to impact positively:

    “Maybe God has put me on this earth to not be a guy that played in the NFL for 15 years ... I still have an unbelievable gift ... to be noticed, to be recognized ... I am in the position now in my life to give back, to do good things and to be a positive influence ...”
    — Manziel, [09:13]

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3. Role of Organizational Stability: Could Johnny Have Succeeded Elsewhere?

[10:47–12:56]

• Cowherd: Notes how environment matters, referencing Sam Darnold's career trajectory and NFL data showing most first-round QBs switch teams due to organization dysfunction.

• Manziel’s Take:

  • “I had Joe Thomas, Alex Mack, Joe Hayden—really good people in the building that tried to get through to me and it just wasn't able to happen at that point in my life.”
  • Admits a more stable team may have helped, but “I was still headed down a path where I needed to get woken up by life.”
  • Highlights maturation and self-assessment developed after football.

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4. NIL & The State of College Football

[18:45–22:02]

• Cowherd: Shares he likes that NIL gives college athletes financial head starts, asks if Manziel worries about “NIL and what it provides.”

• Manziel:

  • Notes discussions with athletes about financial education.

  • Sees huge risk in young athletes receiving large sums early, but hopes schools are teaching basic financial management.

  • Warns of the unregulated “wild, wild west” aspect:

    “Right now, it's just a wild, wild west. You need some regulations, and you need some things for these college kids to not just have all the power and run over the game that is college football right now. It's ridiculous."
    — Manziel, [20:42]

  • Points out biggest NIL benefits are for top-tier players, and transfer risks can leave kids without a team, underscoring the need for caution.

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5. The Allure and Shortcomings of Texas Football

[22:02–24:39]

• Cowherd: Asks if Austin (Texas) is “too fun” to sustain perennial elite football, given Texas’ resources but underachievement.

• Manziel:

  • Blames prior recruiting missteps and notes schadenfreude at Texas A&M as Texas faltered.
  • Appreciates that NIL aids parity for schools like Vanderbilt or Indiana to rapidly improve.
  • "The Big Ten is kind of running the show in college football right now. It's taken a lot of power from the SEC and we'll see if that continues to shift."
    — Manziel, [24:24]

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6. Maturity and Personal Transformation

[24:39–27:28]

• Cowherd: Notes Manziel’s evident growth; asks, “How did you get there?”

• Manziel:

  • Cites therapy, supportive parenting, and honest self-assessment as keys:

    “I think I've accepted the fact that I'm human. I make mistakes. I'm really hard on myself… I've spent a lot of time with therapists. I've worked through a lot of trauma... From there I've taken an honest assessment and an honest look at my life and what's transpired, what I did to myself, what other people did to me. And I look at it through a very honest lens. ... I have better friends that surround me. I have a passion and a purpose in my life of things that I want to do moving forward that get me out of bed every day. And that move me.”
    — Manziel, [25:10–26:25]

  • Wants to leave others with a positive impression:

    “When you have me on your show, I want you to feel like, man, that guy is doing better in life. He has grown up ... I'm going to continue to do [that] for the rest of my life.”
    — Manziel, [26:55]

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7. On Fernando Mendoza & NFL Draft Prospects

[27:28–28:43]

• Cowherd: Asks for Manziel’s player eval of Fernando Mendoza.

• Manziel:

  • Likes Mendoza’s arm strength and decision-making.

    “I think he's going to continue to get better. ... Throws a really good ball, has a lot of zip ... More than impressed me being around him at the Heisman.”
    — Manziel, [27:45]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “You have to do the things that I didn't do. ... The work ethic that you put into the building. Pretty much this. All the things that I didn’t do that got my ass kicked out of the NFL in two years.”
  — Johnny Manziel on advice to Diego Pavia, [07:14]

• "Maybe God has put me on this earth to not be a guy that played in the NFL for 15 years ... I still have an unbelievable gift ... to be noticed, to be recognized. ... I have a passion and a purpose in my life of things that I want to do moving forward..."
  — Manziel, on his new outlook, [09:18, 26:00]

• “I had Joe Thomas, Alex Mack, Joe Hayden... really good people... and it just wasn't able to happen at that point in time in my life. ... I was still headed down a path where I needed to get woken up by life.”
  — Manziel, on “what if” he'd landed on a better team, [11:45]

• On NIL:

  “Right now, it’s just a wild, wild west. You need some regulations, and you need some things for these college kids...”
  — Manziel, [20:42]

• On personal growth:

  “I've spent a lot of time with therapists. I've worked through a lot of trauma that we all have in our life... I've taken an honest assessment and an honest look at my life…”
  — Manziel, [25:15]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamps | |--------------------------------------------|------------------| | Manziel mentoring Diego Pavia | 04:53 – 07:42 | | Reflections and regrets | 07:42 – 10:47 | | Situation & environment in NFL careers | 10:47 – 12:56 | | NIL and college football landscape | 18:45 – 22:02 | | The enigma of Texas football | 22:02 – 24:39 | | Maturity and therapy | 24:39 – 27:28 | | On Fernando Mendoza as a prospect | 27:28 – 28:43 |

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Additional Context

• Manziel’s humility and candor are especially noteworthy given his public history—Cowherd and listeners alike remark on the transformation compared to a decade ago.
• He discusses the importance of good mentorship, therapy, and honest self-reflection as the foundation for personal development.
• The candid football analysis is clear, but the episode is most memorable for Manziel’s evolved worldview and sincere desire to help young athletes avoid his mistakes.

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Conclusion

This episode stands out for its raw honesty and reflection. Johnny Manziel’s appearance isn’t just about football—it’s about second chances, growth, and mentoring others by sharing the hard lessons only he could learn the hard way.

“If you come into my life and interact with me in the streets, I want you to leave with an interaction with me that was funny, that was fun and that made you feel good.” – Johnny Manziel, [26:55]

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Transcript

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[Johnny Manziel]

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[Johnny Manziel]

I'm Clayton Eckerd. In 2022, I was the lead of ABC's the Bachelor.

[Podcast Announcer]

But here's the thing. Bachelor fans hated him.

[Johnny Manziel]

If I could press a button and rewind it all, I would.

[Podcast Announcer]

That's when his life took a disturbing turn. A one night stand would end in a courtroom. The media is here.

[Amber Grimes]

This case has gone viral.

[Johnny Manziel]

The Dating Contract Agree to date me, but I'm also suing you.

[Colin Cowherd]

This is unlike anything I've ever seen before.

[Podcast Announcer]

I'm Stephanie Young. Listen to Love trapped on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Amber Grimes]

It's the new me and it's the old them. This Woman's History Month the podcast if youf Knew Better with Amber Grimes spotlights women who turn missteps into momentum and lessons into power.

My, like, tunnel vision of like, I gotta achieve this was off the strengths of like, I wanna make a better life for us.

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[Podcast Announcer]

on the Adventures of Curiosity Cove podcast. What if the right fit isn't what everyone expects? In the case of the Right Fit, Ella explores movement, confidence, and belonging and learns that not all strength looks the same. This Women's History Month story introduces kids to women who change sports by trusting themselves and moving differently. Listen to Adventures of Curiosity Cove every Monday from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

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[Colin Cowherd]

Thanks for listening to the Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio and noon to 3 Eastern, 9am to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the [e-mail] or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. Now, let's get this party started. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. So last week on the show, I bring Matt Hasselbeck on during the NFL season and I had Hasselbeck on and there was a story that Digo Pavia, the wildly entertaining quarterback for Vanderbilt, you know, and he, you know, he's, he's got some swag and low cocky. There was a story that he was leaning into Johnny Manziel, Johnny Football as a mentor. And I said on the air, I'm like, I don't know if I like that. And then Matt Hasselbeck, and I asked Matt Hasselbeck, I said, well, what do you make of that with Johnny's turbulence in his football life? And Matt Hasselbeck said something very interesting.

[Johnny Manziel]

I don't actually think it's a terrible thing at all that Diego is maybe learning from Johnny Manziel, as long as it's that same kind of thing, like, hey, man, you don't have to do what I did and here's why.

[Colin Cowherd]

And Hasselbeck said he used Jeff George as a mentor and similarly super talented little bit of turbulence. So I said in that moment, you know, I think I'm wrong on this. I think you can learn from anybody in life and whoever you learn from, if they give you good advice, take it. And Johnny Manziel found time for us to come on the show. I told my staff, I said, get him on the show. I want to go into detail on this. He is unbelievably, he's 33 years old. That is wild. When I saw that this morning. So you've got a lot of life experience. A lot. And so I looked up Diego Pavia's kind of family background and, you know, listen, Johnny, there's some bumps with it. It's not perfect. Do you worry? I mean, do you, you know him? If I could ask this, like, what kind of advice is good advice from you to him right now in his life?

[Johnny Manziel]

Listen for the people who see Diego Pavia and they see our friendship, and the first thing that they say is, well, that makes sense why Diego acts the way that he does. He acts a lot like Johnny Manziel. Well, first and foremost, what he does on the field is he plays a lot like me as I've got to know him as a person. And I've made trips to Nashville, I've gone to dinner with his family. I've got to see how his life is. Believe it or not, guys, Diego Pavia was partying before he ever met me. This guy is a leading quarterback of SEC school. I don't know if you guys know, but Marcel Reed, I don't care if it was AJ McCarron back in the day or Aaron Murray, whoever it's been SEC quarterbacks in a town like Nashville, the going to go out, they're going to have fun. These are college kids. It's no different than what the frat kids are doing. You just have more eyes on you. So when I met Diego and I got to know how he was, I saw a guy that could very easily get caught up in the money that he's making. Could very much be out too much. So let's give you this example. After the Heisman and the weekend that I was there with him, obviously I was very vocal about him wanting to win it. I think ultimately it went to the right person and what Mendoza did. But we went out, I took him and his teammates out to Marquee in New York and I started to see other people that he had known running signs and buying bottles with negative things to say about the Heisman or this and that. And that irked me. So I didn't talk to him for a couple days after that. I let him go back home and deal with the shame that he had to for making that and doing that on his own. And then when I spoke to him, I hit him up a couple days later. I'm like, hey, listen, man, you have to do the things that I didn't do. You know, you have to carry yourself with a little more class. You are going to be doubted. You are going to have people come at you and try and tear you apart. When you go to the combine, they may drop a binder on your in front of you with everything that you've done wrong since you've been in college. So you need to be prepared for this. Here's how I would answer these questions with honesty and integrity and get out in front of it and do the things that I didn't do where I was just like, oh, yeah, I'm good. What are you. What are you guys talking about? It's just in college, I'll Change it. You have to actually make the changes for these people to believe in you. Diego, you're not a first round pick, you're not a second round pick, you're not a third round pick. You are going to have to get into a situation claw and fight through training camp for a roster spot. And then maybe that won't even happen. Maybe you'll be on a practice squad and you'll bounce around three different times. But life moving forward for Diego Pavia is going to have to be about a couple of things. Who you surround yourself with and who you're getting your advice from. The work ethic that you put into the building. Pretty much this. All the things that I didn't do that got my ass kicked out of the NFL in two years.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, people are different. I mean, Tom Brady famously didn't drink a beer during the season. That doesn't mean that everybody else has to be that. When you look back at your journey and I've, and I've talked about with friends about this in life is that I don't, I don't have a ton of regrets because at my 20s, I did things that I wouldn't do now, but now I'm 60, so, like, people do what they do at the time because it feels fun and you're a free spirit and you did what you did. Is there anything through your journey, though? If there was one thing, I said, Johnny, what's the one thing? If you could do it again, you'd be like, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I wouldn't do that because I do think you're a free spirit. You're different. You've got a big personality that, by the way, I think you played better with a chip on your shoulder. I think you played better cocky. But is there one thing you do regret?

[Johnny Manziel]

I look back and people ask me this question all the time. I don't play the what if game too much, but I do play and have a point throughout my career where I wish I would have gone back to and made changes and been different. Right. You can always go back and have fun later in your life after you set yourself up for success and get your, you know, finances in order and go have a career that you can look back and be proud of. I look back at a career that I know and I'm honest with myself about how it went. Do I wish I would have got to play longer? I'm watching guys who came into the league a year after me and Jameis and Marcus Mariota who are continuing to play if you think I don't watch the football season and think about that and see that and have, you know, times throughout my career and after my career where I'm like, damn, I wish I was still playing. However, I very much told myself in my head and I've come to peace with what my football career was. You know, I can sit back in my life and be viewed as a legend in college football. A guy that disrupted the game, took the world by storm, did things beyond my wildest dreams and my football career. And hey, I went to Cleveland. It didn't work out. I didn't work hard enough. But for me, maybe God has put me on this earth to not be a guy that played in the NFL for 15 years and win a Super bowl and do all these things. I still have an unbelievable gift in my life, which is to be noticed, to be recognized. And I'm at a point right now where I feel like there's a lot of good that I can do in the world with the platform I have, with the story that I have. My interactions with people since my documentary has come out has been completely different. And what people say to me on the streets and it's special, it's powerful, and I am a people person. I talk to people every single day, whether it's my Uber driver, whether it's somebody at a checkout line. I feel like I am in the position now in my life to give back, to do good things and to be a positive influence, a positive impact that I necessarily wasn't in the past. So you always play and go forward with the cards that you're dealt and hopefully through time and through effort and through working on myself and helping other people. I'll look back on it one day and be proud of what football did for me rather than feel disappointed about not going to the playoffs or being in super bowl winning. Quarterback.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, I mean, the Sam Darnold story is a great example of he went to a bad organization that did not have great leadership and then he finally goes to San Francisco, doesn't play, but he gets Kyle Shanahan and it's like, oh, this is what an organ a grown up organization feels like. Diego Pavia and yourself, if I said to you, Johnny, you would have gone to the Ravens really well run a lot of mentors in the building. I mean, some of I could make an argument with Diego Pavia And Johnny Manziel 10 years ago, some of it was where you landed. In fact, Johnny, from 2010 to 2019, only three of 29 first round quarterbacks are still with our teams. Mahomes, Lamar and Josh. Well, those are all winning organizations. So the bottom line is we're all influenced by our environment. Do you think if you would have gone to a place that was stable, it may have been different?

[Johnny Manziel]

I've spoke my piece on Cleveland a long time ago, and I kind of just let them be what they are and do what they need to do for themselves. But I always think about that. But the thing about me is I had, no matter who was there on a coaching staff, no matter how big of a struggling organization it was, I had Joe Thomas, Alex Mack, Joe Hayden, really good people in the building that tried to get through to me and it just wasn't able to happen at that point in time in my life. You know, I had a lot of things that went on before the draft. I've spoke about this a lot of times. So maybe if I go to a winning organization with a different coaching staff or GM or, you know, front office run in a different way, maybe. But I was still headed down a path where I needed to get woken up by life. And that's taken, you know, a lot of time, a lot of years. I've been out of the league for 11 years. A lot of things have gone on in those 10, 11 years. Shoot. It's been 14 years since I won the Heisman. So time is flying by. I'm just growing up and getting into a lot different place mentally for what I do in my life, what I enjoy doing. And, you know, it's always a what if. And I don't know, I still think I could have would have had a multitude of issues with who I was as a person at 22, 23 years old.

[Colin Cowherd]

Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the iHeartRadio app

[Stigots]

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[Johnny Manziel]

I love you guys show. It's one of my favorites.

[Stigots]

A lot of interaction, guys not taking themselves too seriously. Those are just some of the things that you can expect from Stugatson Co. And Stugots Co. Live. So listen to Stegotson Co. Live and our original podcast. Please subscribe, rate and review Stugatson Co. And God bless football. Taylor's livelihood depends on it. Do it today and you can check all of those out on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

[Colin Cowherd]

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[Amber Grimes]

It's the new me, and it's the old them.

Everybody's on their journey, and your journey is different to theirs.

This woman's History Month, the podcast if you knew Better with Amber Grimes, spotlights women who turn myst steps into momentum and lessons into power.

I think coming out of where I came from, I'm from the Bronx. I think I grew up really poor. I didn't know that then because I very much use my creativity to romanticize life. And I'm like, my mom did a really good job of, like, you step back and you're like, whoa.

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We.

[Amber Grimes]

I don't know how we made it. So a lot of my life was, like, built out of, like, survival to get to the next place. Like, my drive, my, like, tunnel vision of, like, I gotta be better, I gotta achieve this was off. The strengths of, like, I wanna make a better life for us.

If youf Knew Better brings real talk from women who've lived it, unpacking career pivots, relationship lessons, and the mindset shifts that changed everything. Listen to if youf Knew Better with Amber grimes on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

[Podcast Announcer]

On the Adventures of Curiosity Cove podcast, what if the right fit isn't what everyone expects? In the case of the Right Fit, Ella explores movement, confidence and belonging and learns that not all strength looks the same. Tennis is powerful, fast, focused, and kind of fun. Strong swing, Ella. This Women's History Month story introduces kids to women who change sports by trusting themselves and moving differently. A thoughtful episode about identity, courage, and helping kids discover where they truly belong. So it's okay if I'm not quite sure what my thing is yet. It's absolutely okay when and if you do find a sport you love, you may be the next Gertrude, Tony or Venus at Curiosity Cove. Listen to Adventures of Curiosity Cove every Monday from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

[Johnny Manziel]

I went and sat on the little ottoman in front of him.

[Colin Cowherd]

Hi, dad.

[Johnny Manziel]

And just when I said that, my mom comes out of the kitchen and she says, I have some cookies and milk. This is badass, convict. Just finished five years. I'm gonna have cookies and milk at mall.

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[Johnny Manziel]

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[Colin Cowherd]

I I like the Nil and like anything that's new, it, you know, people don't know quite how to get their arms around it. So everybody complains about the Nil and the transfer portal, but I'm kind of like, I Like the idea of college kids getting a little scratch, a little lettuce before pros. Because we used to do documentaries on athletes go broke. And you don't see that as much because kids, they got a little bit of money. I like the Nil as a kid that was around some money. Do you worry about the Nil and what it provides, or are you comfortable with it and think it helps young athletes?

[Johnny Manziel]

I talked to Marcel Reed about this on my podcast last week, and I asked him, are the schools and the programs having financial people come in and talk to you? Are they making sure your guys are being smart about money? You have a private jet deal right now. Marcel Reed, how are you keeping from spending 40,000 to take the boys and to go on a trip and do stuff? And he said they do have people come in. I believe there's probably people in College Station and in these towns that are bankers, that are, you know, people that are managing their money, that are trying the best to make sure these. When these kids get early, early money, you know, if you're a high school kid and you're coming out, you could get a million dollars dropped in your bank account by the time and first day that you get on campus. That's crazy. I obviously had an experience with money very early on, and it took me a long time to learn about it because I didn't educate myself. So it still has the ability to go both ways. It is of money. We're seeing points right now where there's a round table discussion about what's happening with college football and the playoff. I know at the end of this month, as a group of Heisman winners, we're all going to a location, we're sitting down. They're updating us on where the Heisman Trophy ceremony fits into this playoff. You know, where does it fit into the end of the year? Now, I think it's something that we are all very much concern because as a former winner, we love this event. We love being back. I love being around the guys and seeing everybody who comes back. It's a special thing in the history of college football. I don't want to see that go away. But there are things that are constantly changing. It shouldn't be pay for play. Guys should get paid to do a commercial or nil deal or this. Right now, it's just a wild, wild west. You need some regulations, and you need some things for these college kids to not just have all the power and run over the game that is college football right now. It's ridiculous. I think a lot of coaches are sticking up about it. You've seen Calipari talk about it. You've seen Dabo, you've seen Elko. You've seen, you know, Signetti. A lot of these guys be like, oh, this is crazy. What's going on with tampering and this or that. And college football right now is run by agents that may not have a lot of experience, but their friends or family, friends of somebody who's got with these guys. And I don't think they're always getting the best advice. The thing that you can't do as a college athlete is transfer or get into the transfer portal and then not find a new home. And then you're back at home where you started this whole journey. Without a team, you may never get back. So it's tread lightly in this. And really, it's really benefiting. Benefiting the top guys of college football.

[Colin Cowherd]

The you, you went to Texas A and M, but you're right now in Austin. I've always said I think there's three programs in college football that I love when they're good. Miami, Texas, and USC. Because I think they feel like almost like 30% NFL. They're big. A lot of college programs are rural towns, small towns. That's great, too. But I love that Miami's good. I like that Texas is good. But I've always said Texas, for all the resources, actually underachieved, they should have like nine natties. What? And I. And I said this years ago. I said, I think it's too distracting. Austin's too fun. There's the scene, there's the food, there's the women, there's the. It's just this wild, fun town. Is it possible that there's too many good things going on in Austin to be as good all time as Alabama or Ohio State?

[Johnny Manziel]

Well, to be honest, it all kind of started in the 2010 and 2011 recruiting class. 2008, 2009 recruiting class. Texas made some iffy decisions on who they were going to give the keys to for their team. And they really, really messed up by not offering this quarterback out of Kerrville Tyvey a scholarship. They went through their downhill slide, and we got to watch it from a Texas A and M point of view with a big smile on our faces as they ate it on Saturdays every year for four or five years. But look, I understand that USC is the Miami's, the Texas is. They should be better this and that. I am a bigger fan in college football right now of the Texas A and M's, the Vanderbilts, the Indiana's, the teams who haven't been good in the past. But the nil landscape has allowed them an opportunity to change their program very, very fast. With the right coach, the right leadership, the right money of boosters, you can have Vandy have a season like they had. You can have Indiana come back and win a national championship. Get a quarterback in a team like Mendoza, and you go and you knock off a Miami team who's been dying to get back to that position since the early 2000. So I like the parody of college football. Look, we'll always have the history of the Texas, usc, Rose Bowl. We'll always have the history of, you know, the Miami Hurricanes, teams that are some of the best ever. I said this on a podcast a couple weeks ago. The Big Ten is kind of running the. The show in college football right now. It's taken a lot of power from the sec and we'll see if that continues to shift.

[Colin Cowherd]

I gotta end with this. It's a personal question, so you don't have to answer it, but you sound so much more mature than 10 years ago. And by the way, you're older, obviously, but in your journey, how did you get there? Was it therapy? Parenting? Looking in the mirror, you sound like a different guy. You've got a different perspective. That is really hard to do because you. You not only had some missteps, you were public. It's much harder to do when you're public and people are reminding you of your mistakes. How did you get to today?

[Johnny Manziel]

Look, I think I've accepted the fact that I'm human. I make mistakes. I'm really hard on myself. If you guys don't think I was really hard on myself about things that were going on in the past that embarrass myself, embarrass my school, embarrassed, you know, my family. You know, I was always raised by a great group of parents who did a lot for me, who instilled great values. I went to amazing coaches in my life that instilled good morals, good values, good things in me. And now I've done a lot of work on myself. I've spent a lot of time with therapists. I've worked through a lot of trauma that we all have in our life, from the way that we grew up, from things that may have happened with your parents, from instances in life that you couldn't always control. You know, I couldn't control certain things that happened to me in my life. And there was a lot of things that I could that I didn't do right. So from there I've taken an honest assessment and an honest look at my life and what's transpired, what I did to myself, what other people did to me. And I look at it through a very honest lens. And to be honest, I look at situations now in life from not only my perspective, but from how this may affect somebody else or if this decision is made, what does it mean for this or that. And look, I hold myself to my own standard. I was raised in a church. I feel like I have more religion in my life. I have better friends that surround me. I have a passion and a purpose in my life of things that I want to do moving forward that get me out of bed every day. And that move me. I'm in a great place in every sense of the way, work wise, family wise, where I live, what I have going on in my life. And I'm proud of those things. And there's one thing about me is I appreciate Hasselback and what he had to say that got me here last week. I appreciate you for having the perspective that you had on things. And I'm a writer for my friends. You have always been good to me. I appreciate you having me come on the show. And more than anything, like I said, I want to spread a great message of when you come into my life and you have me on your show, I want you to feel like, man, that guy is doing better in life. He has grown up. And if you come into into my life and interact with me in the streets, I want you to leave with a, you know, interaction with me. That was funny, that was fun and that made you feel good and have a good time. And that's what I'm going to continue to do for the rest of my life.

[Colin Cowherd]

Wow, Great perspective. Good for you. Hey, you know what? Let me ask you a football question before we go. Fernando Mendoza, not a great athlete. People say he's a little dorky. Whatever. So was Andrew Luck. What do you make of him? Just as a player. What do you make of him?

[Johnny Manziel]

Yeah, I think he's going to continue to get better. I think he throws as I was watching him at the national championship game, throws a really good ball, has a lot of zip on his passes, reads coverage very well. He obviously had some good help at the receiver point and that team that they had last year at Indiana, the situation he's going into is going to call for a lot of patience. But Brock Bowers, you know, genty rebuild some of the offensive Line, get a defense, you keep Max Crosby, like, have some patience with it. And I feel like this kid is going to be very good. He more than impressed me being around him at the Heisman. We have continued our relationship since then and I've talked to him, you know, a lot through this period of the NFL draft. He's a great kid. I wish him nothing but the best.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, good stuff, Johnny. Really appreciate it. You gave us 20 minutes. You didn't have to. And Godspeed. Good luck to you. You're always welcome on the show. If you want to promote something, call us, we'll put you on. I'd love to have you on during the season. You got great insight.

[Johnny Manziel]

Yeah, for sure. For sure. Yeah, anytime. Thank you, guys. Thank you to your staff, everybody. Thanks for letting me come on the Herd. Much love. You bet.

[Colin Cowherd]

Johnny Manzel, Johnny Football, who has really turned his life around. And good for him. Good for. You know, it was funny when I reached out, I thought, you know, we've been critical of him. You know, this is. I talk. He's an athlete. I talk, I try to be fair. And I thought, yeah, he probably not going to be comfortable. And boom, he said, you absolutely. I want to talk about it. So good for him. Kind of transformational to listen to him from 10 years ago, right? Like, wow, you know, put his head down, got some therapy, looked in the mirror. Different dude. He'd be, you know, he'd be a. I'm telling you, if you didn't see him play at Texas A and M like he was. I mean, there's been a handful of college quarterbacks. Johnny Manziel, Cam Newton, Tommy Frazier at Nebraska, you know, Tim Tebow, that you're just watching them and you're not sure it's going to work at the next level, but it really works at the college level. And I mean, he was just, dude, he was just different. He was one of the first quarterbacks that Nick Saban put his hands in the air is like, yeah, I can't, I can't stop this guy. Johnny Football. That is a great nickname. Of all the. Of all the football nicknames, Johnny Football's pretty damn strong. We'll take a break. J. Mac Herd line next. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd. Weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio. FS1 and the iHeartRadio app Sunday on Fox.

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

The IndyCar series roars into Arlington for the first time ever. And the inaugural race begins with a star studded Texas sized party. The Java House Grand Prix of Arlington Sunday, 12:30 Eastern only on Fox.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, J. Mac is off tomorrow. I am not. John Mittlekoff will take the chair and will head into the weekend. So I figured we do tomorrow. Headlines today. Tomorrow's headlines today with jmac. There's a lot of NFL free agency presence. They've all been wrapped. So here we go. Tomorrow's headlines Today, let's talk about the big movers and shakers during free agency. What will the headline be for one Max Crosby?

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

Well, I'm a little nervous about this one, Colin, given the early back and forth squabbling we had over Kirk Cousins Mendoza. I mean, listen Raiders, you think the arrow is pointing up? The headline for Max Crosby staying in Vegas will be the holdover. What? Sacks in Vegas stays in Vegas. I do believe they will be good. But Colin, I have major questions. So everybody's excited. Hey, we got Quay Walker at linebacker. We got Nicobe Dean to help the defense. Colin, I looked into their defensive coordinator, gentleman named Rob Leonard. First time defensive coordinator, first time calling plays. Young guy bounced around the league. We have no idea what to expect from this. And again, we're talking about a rookie quarterback. I know you love the Linderbaum signing. They've made a couple moves around the edges and it's easy to get excited about. Oh, they made all this, spent all this money. Maybe they're making moves. Colin, I did look this up last year. Just how bad Was this defense? 28th in pressure rate, could not get to the quarterback. 5th in missed tackles. Okay, they were just middling among in defensive epa. So this was like a below average group. And I don't know that a couple linebackers and Max Crosby returning off a major injury with a new defensive coordinator, a new head coach, a rookie quarterback. It may be too much and we may want to recalibrate to like six wins. Max.

[Colin Cowherd]

Max. I see too negative.

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

You like that? Yeah.

[Colin Cowherd]

Tomorrow's headlines today, how about to leaving the Dolphins big dead money hit. Where will he land?

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

Yeah, everybody's excited about Kyler Murray. I think TUA is actually the bigger move. This has the potential to be great for the young guy out of Alabama. The headline for TUA in Atlanta next season will be TUA Left turns. NFC southpaws turn right into playoffs. Colin, I think this is in a playoff team now. Every year we do this with Atlanta. This is the year, right? Bijan Drake, they're keeping Kyle Pitts. I think the arrow is pointing up. I looked into the Michael Penix injury, so this is interesting. They're calling it A partially torn acl. Yeah, that appears to be a nine month recovery. He got it late November. That conservatively puts him back in August. I'm ready to go on record now that two is starting week one in Atlanta for Stefanski. And remember who did Stefanski like in Cleveland? Dylan Gabriel, similar profile. Athletically lefty, small Chua. I think Tua starts and Colin, this is a good offense, a good head coach. There are some things to like about the Falcons who I know you dislike every year.

[Colin Cowherd]

Tomorrow's headlines today I think Malik Willis is a rising star. What say you with the headlines?

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

What was it? The 35 pass attempts last season? The five starts in four years. The headline for Malik Willis in Miami will be micro QB macro challenge. Miami has pocket sized problems. Listen, I know this a little bit harsh Dolphins fans. I'm sorry. Listen, it's a good deal. I like it. But Colin, I don't know what Miami's game plan is here. They dump most of their good players, right? Let's get our cap in order. We dump to a biggest cap hit dead cap hit in NFL history. We've got a Chan Waddle and Willis and pretty much basically nothing else. Offensive line, eh? Defense ridden with holes. You got a first time head coach. I don't see this going great. I know you like Willis but I'm just not seeing it. The upside? This. This feels like a five or six win team and they'll be drafting. I don't know. You think Willis is their franchise quarterback? Because I don't think so.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, they're going to have to for the next two years like Denver did with Russell Wilson's cap hit. They're going to have to hit on a majority of their draft picks. They're going to have to hit on their high end draft picks so they can get elite talent without paying it. That's the only way to get out of this is hitting on an inexpensive quarterback like Bo Nicks or when you get into problems. So you cross your fingers.

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

Denver also had Sean Payton and Miami has Jeff Halfley.

[Colin Cowherd]

True. Tomorrow's headlines today we can all agree that DJ Moore to the Bills is good, right?

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

Maybe so. DJ Moore, obviously a good receiver, has been declining a little in Chicago, but the headline for DJ Moore in Buffalo will be less is more. Buffalo does more with less. Oh yeah. I think this is still a playoff team. Obviously Josh Allen helps being one of the best quarterbacks in the league. But the offense did sputter at times. Last year they had the electric James Cook. I like the two tight ends Shakir, a real good slot receiver. They were lacking a stretch the field guy and DJ Moore adds that for sure. I guess my question would be defensively, Colin. Like sure, the offense is going to be fine and Josh Allen's probably going to outscore folks, but have they done enough defensively? Watching Bo Knicks carve them up in that playoff game, that's seared in my head. That was awful. And they lose. Terron Johnson, one of the best nickel cornerbacks in the league. He's gone both side, best I can tell. Still unsigned. I don't know that there's a lot of movers and shakers on that defense and we're seeing. You mentioned it with the Chiefs earlier. The defense just doesn't have it. Buffalo, same deal. Both of these guys, Chiefs and Bills have decided we paid our quarterback. Let's go all in on offense. Forget the defense.

[Colin Cowherd]

Finally, tomorrow's headlines. Today, Mike Evans to the Niners feels like another wide receiver of age. Another offensive player in the 30s joining an older team. What do you got?

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

Yeah, I mean I, I like Mike Evans a lot. You know, I love me some Brock Purdy Evans already saying really nice things about Purdy. It warms my heart. However, the headline for Mike Evans to the 49ers will be over the Evans and through the woods to play more golf. We go. Colin, I don't have the Niners in the playoffs in the NFC next season. And I'm with you. This is just an old team. I love the Evans contract. It's essentially a one year deal for like 16 million and change and he should help them. But this is a riddled offense with problems. The best players on your defense are coming off season ending injuries. You lose. Salah, you know, I, I want to like this Niners team, but that's the toughest division in football, right? Well, I mean we know the Rams are loaded.

[Colin Cowherd]

Listen, they've got some good young players because of their draft picks. The problem is all their best players are old. Kittle, McCaffrey, Trent Warner, Bosa. It's not that they don't have, you know, I mean Pearsall is a nice young player. He's not one of their top seven

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

or eight players, not yet.

[Colin Cowherd]

So Brock Purdy is one of their only exceptional players who's young. So they, it's just you can have old players, but when they're the foundational pieces of your football team, old players get hurt more often and they recover more slowly. And the NFL season's never been longer, so that's kind of where we're at.

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

The Christian McCaffrey thing's interesting. I, I don't, I'm, I don't really want to put this out there, but I think it deserves a little discussion. Let's say the Niner season's not going their way four and seven around the trade deadline, do they start dangling pieces for a quick rebuild on the fly? Do they put McCaffrey out there? Hey, any contender want to come crab Christian McCaffrey and make a move? You know he would be huge on so many teams because he's.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, there's already been a rumor about Trent Williams. So I think you get to a point if you can get a big draft pick with a 38 year old left tackle, you know somebody. Again, I think everything with the Niners to your point is on the table if they start slowly. The Rams and the Seahawks are two of the best rosters in the sport. Arizona has now got an offensive guy. You know, Arizona can be dangerous with all the weapons they have at tight end, wide receiver, running back. So I think everything with San Francisco is on the table. I just know that their seven or eight best players are all guys who have been banged up in recent years.

[Colin Cowherd's Co-host (possibly a sports analyst)]

All of them like the Mac Jones stuff. It sounds like they were asking for a lot of see what happens if a quarterback gets dinged up in the preseason elsewhere or in the summer and all of a sudden somebody needs a quarterback. I mean you probably got to offload Mac Jones and get whatever you can right. The 27 draft. Colin I know we say this every year. It's pretty loaded. Like Jeremiah Smith from Ohio State probably is the best non quarterback in the draft and the quarterbacks are going to go at the top. It's a loaded draft. I think Niners are going to start selling pieces. We'll see.

[Colin Cowherd]

Johnny Mandel stopped by for about 25 minutes earlier this hour. Did a really nice job. There's a story out that he is mentoring Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia and, and, and at first I kind of pushed back. I didn't know if that's a good thing. Matt Hasselbeck said. I think it actually is a good thing. And here's some of the advice Johnny's given him.

[Johnny Manziel]

Hey, listen man, you have to do the things that I didn't do. You have to carry yourself with a little more class. You are going to be doubted. You are going to have people come at you and try and tear when you go to the combine, they may drop a binder on your in front of you with everything that you've done wrong since you've been in college. So you need to be prepared for this. Here's how I would answer these questions with honesty and integrity and get out in front of it and do the things that I didn't do where I was just like, oh, yeah, I'm good. What do you, what are you guys talking about? I was just in college. I'll change it. You have to actually make the changes for these people to believe in you.

[Colin Cowherd]

A very refreshing. I'll put it on the podcast. Talk with Johnny Manziel. Johnny Football. Netflix did a doc on him that was, I mean, eye opening, eye opening stuff. All right, I'll be back tomorrow with John Middelkoff. J. Mac's probably going to some adventure in the Pacific. You know, he's a world global traveler, global citizen, so herd.

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