Monday Night Football and the Ravens won’t get a taste of Johnny Football after all.
On Tuesday afternoon, Browns Head Coach Mike Pettine announced that Josh McCown will take over for Johnny Manziel as the team’s starter. Manziel will serve as the team’s No. 3 quarterback against the Ravens.
The sudden change of heart comes just a week after the Browns announced that Manziel would be the team’s starter for the rest of the season.
However, during the bye week in between, Manziel was videotaped partying back home in Austin, Texas. It continues a pattern of such behavior from Manziel, who entered treatment this past offseason.
“Josh McCown will be the starting quarterback on Monday night against the Ravens,” Browns Head Coach Mike Pettine said in a team statement.
“Everyone in this organization wants what is best for Johnny, just like we do for every player in our locker room. I’m especially disappointed in his actions and behavior because he has been working very hard. The improvements from last year to this year have been tremendous but he still has to consistently demonstrate that he has gained a good understanding of what it takes to be successful at the quarterback position on this level. It goes well beyond the field.”
Manziel was coming off one of his best games as a pro, in which he completed 33-of-45 passes for 372 yards, one touchdown and one interception in Pittsburgh.
However, the Ravens may still have preferred to see him over McCown this Monday night.
McCown torched Baltimore in Week 5, completing 36 of 51 passes for 457 yards. He threw two touchdowns and no interceptions, leading the Browns to a 33-30 overtime win.
It was the third-most passing yards the Ravens have allowed in a single game in franchise history and the most yards any Browns quarterback has ever thrown for in a game.
The 36-year-old McCown last started in Week 8 against the Arizona Cardinals. He went 18-of-34 for 211 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.
The Ravens have yet to face Manziel, who has played in 11 games and started five, during the former Heisman Trophy winner and first-round pick’s two-year career.
