Despite some incidents that could have sabotaged his chances of earning a starting job on the NFL's opening weekend - unintentional or otherwise - Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Johnny Manziel still has a chance of landing the job.
Johnny Manziel admits to rookie mistakes but denies what those mistakes are
NFL.com reported Friday that Manziel has improved with his progressions in team situations, which has earned him points with the Browns coaching staff.
"Receiver Anthony Armstrong told (NFL Media) that on one ball he caught, he knows he was the third option on the play" NFL.com reported. "During OTAs and even the start of camp, Manziel was a little lost if his first read wasn't open. His mechanics would get sloppy or he'd just try and run. The progression shows growth from the rookie."
NFL.com added that Browns coach Mike Pettine targets Tuesday as the day he wants to decide on a starting quarterback between Manziel and incumbent Brian Hoyer.
Johnny Manziel confirms a girlfriend?
"Yeah, that should be the target date," he said. "Something unforeseen could come up, but we're hopeful. I do want to see if I can cut the quarterback questions down by about 90 percent after next week. And the chemistry, the continuity -- I think that's important to establish that."
Manziel caused yet another stir Thursday when he reportedly was late for a team meeting. According to ESPN, Manziel and a couple of other rookies - who were not identified - apparently misread a schedule that indicated the Browns would have a brief, five-minute meeting to start the week on Monday.
Manziel also appeared in multiple media reports about his offseason antics with his time off from various Browns preseason team activities. The reports prompted Browns owner Jimmy Haslem to tell Manziel to tone down his act, a request to which Manziel basically denied.
ESPN added that the Browns have been impressed with Manziel's work ethic during training camp. It said that Pettine addressed the tardiness issue internally and refused to overdramatize Manziel's latest incident.
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